


Something There

by carolinenite



Series: The Something There AU-verse [1]
Category: The Newsroom (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Eventual Relationships, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2018-05-03
Packaged: 2018-08-12 12:09:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 70,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7934083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carolinenite/pseuds/carolinenite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by a prompt by <a href="http://lilacmermaid25.tumblr.com/"> lilacmermaid on tumblr </a></p><p> </p><p>What if Will & Mackenzie were never a couple before Mac left, but only the best of friends?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, friends! I know that the epilogue to Plus Two (http://archiveofourown.org/works/6571570/chapters/15036448) is still outstanding, and I promise to have it posted soon.
> 
> I have no idea where this piece will go or how long it will be. Updates will probably be sporadic-- I'll use this as my 'need a distraction in boring meeting' piece.
> 
> I really hope you buy into the premise of this piece because exploring the relationship from this angle is really fun!
> 
> So, without further ado, may I present 'in which Will and Mac never shredded each other's hearts'.

Will strode through the bullpen and into his office, not recognizing until the door was swinging behind him that very few of his staff were where they were supposed to be.  He sighed, relatively certain of where they would be.  _Anywhere but here._  

He hadn’t intended to go off on that sorority girl at Northwestern, and he probably wouldn’t have, except for the utter disbelief that had colored his day that day.  The day that Nina had served him with divorce papers.  Had they been happy?  Happy enough, he’d thought.  He had been faithful, which was more than he could say for her.  He had been polite and considerate.  Had it been ‘the great love’?  Probably not.  Their marriage had certainly lacked passion; even their fighting had grown stale.  They had never been particularly explosive in the bedroom, but Will had gotten used to his almost celibate marriage.  While he knew he was just marking time in the marriage, the status quo had certainly not bothered him enough to change it.  Nina’s ‘blow for freedom’, as she had so eloquently phrased it when he had called to ask her why, was probably the bravest thing that she had ever done, and he was mildly miffed that he hadn’t gotten there first.  And so, he had exploded at a college student before taking a three-week leave of absence to get the divorce over and done with.  It had cost him dearly to expedite all of the proceedings, but it was, blessedly, finalized.

Will set down his coat and briefcase with a firm shake of his head.  _This is not the day for reminiscence._   He pushed the door to his office open and reentered the nearly empty bullpen.

“Ellen,” he called to his blonde assistant.  She looked up and shook her head at him.

“I’m Maggie, sir.  Remember?”

“No.  I don’t remember.  Maggie, you said?”  The blonde nodded.  “Okay, and you’re my assistant?”  She nodded again.  “Okay.  Not Ellen.”  _Fuck.  Why can’t I get my bearings today?_

“No, sir.”

“Did you used to be named Ellen?”

Maggie’s face clouded with confusion.  She had come to News Night on the recommendation of one of her journalism professors.  She had come to work with the brilliant Will McAvoy, media elite, champion of honest discourse.  What she had found was a detached man who seemed more broken than anything else.

“No, sir.  Always been Maggie.”

“Stop calling me sir,” he looked sharply at her.  “Do you know where everyone is?”  Maggie nodded but didn’t immediately answer.  “Do they still work here?”

“Yes, but not for you.”  The words flew out of Maggie’s mouth before she could stop them.  “Don and most of the senior staff are going to 10 o’clock.”  She let her words settle before continuing.  “Elliot starts there in two weeks, remember?”

Will nodded.  He vaguely remembered the conversations in which he had advocated for Elliot.

“So, I don’t have an EP or a staff?”

“Oh you’ve got an EP, Billy,” a new voice entered the conversation.  “If you want me, I mean.”

Will whipped around to see Mackenzie McHale breeze into the newsroom.

“Kenz,” he spoke the name with near reverence, “what are you doing here?”

“I saw your tirade, pal.”  She shook her head lightly.  “There are better ways to hit the reset button, you know.”

“Shouldn’t you be reporting from a cave somewhere?”  There was vitriol in the question.

“Don’t take your anger out on me, Billy.  You knew I was going, and you knew why.”

Will, noticing Maggie’s head following the exchange back and forth like a Wimbledon match, took a deep breath.

“Should we move this into my office?”

“Sure.”  Will moved toward his office.  As Mac passed Maggie, she extended her hand.  “Mackenzie McHale.”

“Margaret Jordan.”

The two women shook hands and exchanged a smile as Mac crossed into Will’s office.  Will had taken a seat on the couch, and Mac joined him, kicking off her shoes and draping her legs across his lap.

“You don’t get to be pissed at me for going.  I didn’t leave _you_.”  She hit the last word emphatically, reminding him that while he may have been collateral damage in the saga of her leaving, he was not the intended target.

“Well, you were sure as hell gone.”

“I sure as hell was.  But that wasn’t about you, and you know it.”

“Are you better?”

“I’m over having my heart broken again, if that’s what you mean.”  She reached over and swatted his arm.  “Meanwhile, what the hell happened with Nina?  I saw it on Page 6 yesterday.”

“I have no idea.  Nothing had changed.”

“Maybe that was the problem.”

“Maybe.”  There was a wealth of information in the word.  Mac had always known Will better than anyone.  She had known that Nina didn’t spark in Will the fire that she knew he was capable of.

“Are you okay?” He shrugged in response.  “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not at all.”

She laughed.  “Alright.  We’ll start with something easier.  Charlie called me.”  He locked eyes with her but didn’t speak.  “Don quit, huh?”

“I dunno what the fuck happened, Kenz.”

“You’ve been compromising, pal-of-mine.  You’ve been bending your principles.  And when your EP pointed it out to you, you lost your head.  You did it again at Northwestern, and we all know that your show has been missing something since I left.”

“Yeah,” Will spat with annoyance, “it’s been fucking missing you.”  He leaned over and gathered his best friend into a tight embrace.  “I’ve been missing you, Mackenzie.”

“I missed you, too, Will.”  She hopped off the couch and started pacing around the office.  “Charlie's worried."

"I know."  He stared at the woman making circles on the carpet.  "Can we just not, right now, though?"

"Sure,” she began, avoiding eye contact.  “It would seem that you are in need of an EP.  And, as it happens,” now she caught his eye, “I’m in need of a job.”

Will didn’t miss the tone in her voice as she confessed her current lack of employment.

“When can you start?”

Mac’s face lit up; she bounced back to the couch and quickly kissed the top of Will’s head.

“I can start tonight.”

“It’s Saturday.”

“Right.  I can start Monday.”  She planted her feet and squared her shoulders.

“What now?”

“I’ve got some people that I want to bring with me.”

“I know you’re ready for a fight on that, Mackenzie, but I’m a little light on staff right now.  If you say they’re good, they’re hired.”  He shrugged.  It felt _right_ to have her back in his office.  Maybe he wouldn’t have to bear the entire burden of the show if she was in the trenches side-by-side with him.

“They’re great!”  She sounded enthusiastic, and Will accepted her words at face value.  “They’re young, but they’re great.” 

Will cocked an eyebrow at her as she qualified her statement, but he didn’t say anything.  He trusted her implicitly.  He had no reason not to.

 

 

Forty-five minutes later, Will and Mackenzie were seated at the bar at Hang Chews, empty tequila shooters in front of their Jameson rocks cocktails.

“So, you really haven’t been here since I left?” Mackenzie asked, surprised.

“Nina preferred a different caliber establishment, and I wasn’t very invested in the newer staffers.”

“Do you think that might be why you’re facing a mass mutiny now, Billy?” Mac said through a hard look.

He tilted back the rest of his drink, finishing it in a gulp.

“Another, please,” he said to the petite brunette behind the bar.

“Coming right up, Will.”  She smiled warmly at him.

“It’s Chelsea, right?”

“You do remember!  It’s been a while, and I wasn’t sure.”

Will looked at Mac, his expression plainly saying _I told you so._

“I get it Will.  You’re a good guy.”

“Thank you!” he exclaimed, mollified.

“That doesn’t change that fact that it seems you’ve been acting like a complete ass since I left.”  She sipped her drink.  “What really happened, Billy?” her tone was soft, and she laid a hand over his.  “When I left, the show was accomplishing everything we ever dreamed.  The staff was a family.  You were happy.”

“You’ve been gone two years, Mackenzie.  A lot happened.”  He contemplated pulling his hand from under hers, but refrained.  Her physical presence was as soothing to him as her emotional support.  “It’s not like I could just pick up the phone and call you.”

“You could have, you know.  I always picked up the phone when you did call.”

“The little things seemed petty and insignificant, and I guess they turned into big things when I wasn’t looking.”  It felt good to be open with her; she was one of the only people with whom he didn’t hold himself back.

“Well, we’ll start putting it back together on Monday.”  She smiled encouragingly at him.  He gave her a tentative smile and stared into his drink.  “So, Billy…” she dragged his name out and smiled a little when his head came up and his eyes were curious.  He knew her, better than she remembered.  “Are you still in the same apartment, or…”

He saved her from the awkwardness of asking if Nina had kicked him out of their home by cutting her off.

“Yeah.  Nina bought a place in L.A.”

“L.A!  Billy, how much money did you give her to go away?”

“She wanted to go, Kenz,” he said, patiently.

“Okay.”  She let that settle for a moment.  “How’s your guestroom?”

 _Ah… I get it now._   “Blessedly empty.  Why?”

“Don’t make me beg, Billy.”

“Do you need somewhere to stay, Mackenzie?” he smiled, in spite of himself.

“I might, for a while.  What do you say?  Could you handle a roommate?”

Will pushed back from the bar, laid down some cash, and offered a hand to his best friend.

“Come on roomie.  Let’s go home.”

She took his hand with a wide grin.

“It’s good to be back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there you have it: the first chapter of a world in which Brian Brenner didn't break Will and Mackenzie up, a world in which Nina Howard didn't settle for New York and went west to follow her dreams (bye).
> 
> (Bonus points to anyone who spotted the Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood moment!)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 9/7: Updated only for a couple of tragic typos. Apologies to all!
> 
> 9/6: Well, family, here's chapter 2. I think it's only a matter of time before Will and Mac find that living together, as roommates, isn't going to be as uncomplicated as they think it will.
> 
> It should get fun!

Chapter 2

Will came through the elevator doors quietly, unsurprised by the dark apartment.  He didn’t really expect Mackenzie to be awake at 3am on a Tuesday.  She knew he had had a late dinner meeting with the Lansing family, and she had made plans with the staff.  Still, he liked knowing that she was home before he went to bed.

He kicked off his shoes, in the spirit of not making noise as he moved around the apartment, and moved toward the kitchen.  Halfway there, he kicked a man’s shoe.

“Fuck,” he cursed softly, making a mental note to be more careful with where he left his footwear.

When he reached the stove, he flipped the small light above it on, and chuckled at what he saw.  An empty tequila bottle sat, uncapped, next to two shot glasses.  Salt was trailed around the counter, and there was a tie on the floor.  _I guess her night went better than mine._ He glanced back and saw that the shoe he had tripped over was, in point of fact, not his.

Will put the bottle in the trash and set the glasses in the sink before shrugging and heading for his room.  He unknotted his tie as he walked, reaching back to massage his neck for what felt like the hundredth time that day.  _Must have slept wrong last night._   With practiced precision, he unbuttoned his shirt and slid his belt off.

In the cool darkness of his bedroom, Will deposited his socks and shirt in the hamper and entered the bathroom to brush his teeth.  After all the years of coming in after Nina had gone to bed, Will was used to completing his bedtime rituals in the dark.  Now that she was gone, the habit remained.  Teeth brushed, face washed, Will stripped his pants off and slid under the comforter and between the sheets.  He stretched his legs down to the end of the bed and rolled onto his stomach, allowing his arms to stretch across the mattress.  When his hand collided with a warm body, Will leapt from the bed as though an electric current ran through him.  He jammed his fingers at the light switch, flooding the room with light.

“Jesus, Billy!” Mackenzie exclaimed, pulling a pillow over her eyes.  “Turn off the fucking lights.”

“Kenz,” he said, turning off the light and willing his heart to return to a normal rhythm, “you know this is my room, right?”

“I know,” her voice was tinged with sleep and tequila.  “But Jim passed out in my bed, and god, I couldn’t sleep with him.”

“Because the sex was bad?”  Will was confused and trying not to show it.  Mac took the pillow from her eyes and stared at Will like he had three heads.

“Because he works for me, Billy.  We didn’t have sex.  We just got drunk.”

“I see.”  He pondered her logic for a moment.  “Don’t you work for me?”  He waited for a response.  When he didn’t get one, he prompted her.  “Kenz?”

“You work for me, Billy-boy.  Now hush, and go to sleep.”  She smacked her lips in a semblance of a good night kiss before rolling toward the opposite wall and immediately falling back asleep.

“You know, this is exactly the kind of thing that didn’t use to happen before you moved in.”  His words fell on deaf ears.  So, with a resigned sigh, Will pulled pajama pants and a t-shirt out of his bureau, dressed for bed, and climbed in next to the waiflike woman who was now snoring like a 300 lb. lumberjack.

 

The next morning, Will was awakened by a small moan next to him.  He rolled over to see Mackenzie’s hands pressed to her temples.

“Hey there, champ,” he spoke softly, attempting not to cause her additional discomfort.  As the words crossed his lips, Mac jumped visibly.  Her hands flew to her neck and then chest.  Upon finding that she was wearing a t-shirt, one of Will’s he noted, she relaxed minutely.

“Billy… what ha--- did we---“  She looked at him at him with wide eyes.

“Shit!” Will exclaimed louder than he intended, and she jumped again.  “No, Kenz.  Nothing like that.”  He laid a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to soothe her.  “You, Jim, tequila.  I think he’s in your bed.”

She closed her eyes, willing the throbbing in her brain to lessen while she put the pieces of her evening together.  After a moment, she nodded.

“I think you’re right.”  Mackenzie scooted across the bed, aligning her body with Will’s and lifting his arm to drape it over her.  She grunted a little at the effort of lifting his arm.  “Everything hurts.”

Will trailed his fingers through her hair, gently working through the knots that seemed to have taken up residence there sometime between the show last night and this morning.

“Do you want me to get you a painkiller?  Breakfast maybe?”

“Why are you being so nice to me when I crashed your bedroom uninvited?”  Mackenzie questioned Will through closed eyes.

“Because you look really pale, and if I don’t take care of you, you might not make it through the broadcast tonight.”  Mackenzie buried her face in Will’s chest with a groan.

“Ugh.  Work.”  Her voice was muffled by his body, and she sniffled lightly.  “I’m just going to stay right here and never get up again.”

“Don’t let your boss hear you talk like that.”  He stretched his legs out and rolled his neck.  “Fuck.”

“What’s wrong?”

“My neck.  It’s still stiff.”

“Does it hurt?”  Every time she spoke, her voice vibrated through his body.  The sensation was not at all unpleasant.

_Don’t go there, McAvoy.  She’s your best friend._

“No, Kenz.  It doesn’t hurt.  I just brought it up for conversation’s sake.”  His tone was harsher than he intended, his walls brought up by the minute stirring of desire that had startled him.  He felt her stiffen against him, and then she sat up with a look of mild confusion.

“There’s no need to get grumpy, Will.”  She offered him a small smile and reached out to touch his neck.  Her fingers traced around, searching until she found the tension he was carrying.  She began to knead the area, fingers warming his skin as she focused on the knots.  She smiled as he struggled to contain a contented moan.  “Is that better?”

“Getting there,” he responded, slightly gruff tone tinging his voice.  Her fingers were exactly where he was most sore, and they were working magic.  An image of Mackenzie, straddling his back and massaging his neck, his back, and lower, floated unbidden into his mind.  His breath caught in his throat, and he coughed, shaking Mackenzie off him.  “Thanks.  I’m okay now.” 

Again, she looked at him, confused.

“Alright.  I’m going to make some coffee.”

“Yeah.  Sounds good.”  He sat up.  “I’m going to take a quick shower, and then I’ll make us some breakfast.  Okay?”

“Sure.”  She shrugged.  She knew him well enough to know that something was off.  “Are you alright?”

Will took a deep breath before flashing Mac a brilliant smile.

“Everything’s great, Kenz.  I’ll be right out.”  She looked mollified as she padded out of his bedroom, wearing his t-shirt that covered the middle of her thighs but certainly not much else.

_Fuck.  That’s inconvenient._

Will grabbed his phone from the nightstand on his way into the bathroom, scrolling through the contacts as he turned on the shower.

 _Text- to Rebecca Halliday:_   Dinner tonight?

He sat the phone down and got into the shower.  By the time he was finished he had several new messages.

_Text- from Rebecca Halliday:_ Tonight?  Let me see if I can move some things around.

 _Text- from Rebecca Halliday:_ Free after 10pm.

 _Text- from Mackenzie McHale:_   I think I broke the coffee maker.  Hurry up in the shower.  BILLY!

 _Text- from Rebecca Halliday:_ I should eat first, right?

 _Text- from Nina Howard:_   I can’t find the Harry Winston choker.  Can you please check your safety deposit box at some point in the next week?

_Well, we were just fine until Nina got involved…_

He and Nina communicated in the same way they had before the divorce, maybe even more effectively.  He was coming to realize that that was probably one of the reasons for his current marital status.  Toweling his hair, Will mentally composed his replies before tapping them out.

 _Text- to Nina Howard:_   Of course.  If I find it, do you want it sent, or would you prefer to pick it up next time you’re on this coast?

 _Text- to Rebecca Halliday:_ How well you know me.  My place.  10pm.

 _Text- to Mackenzie McHale:_   I bet it’s not broken.  I bet you didn’t turn it on.

 _Text- to Mackenzie McHale:_   Do you think it’s odd that Nina and I get along better now that we’re divorced?

A reply came immediately.

 _Text- from Mackenzie McHale:_   No odder than you texting me from half an apartment away.  Come make my coffee.

Will smiled, feeling much more in control.  He and Rebecca would skip dinner.  They had gotten good at that since his divorce.  That would banish all thoughts of Kenz from his mind.  He would messenger the choker to Nina, or else he would have something comparable sent over directly from a jeweler out there.  He felt guilty about his marriage, even though it wasn’t entirely his fault.

 _Good.  That’s the plan, then._   He nodded determinedly to himself in the mirror.  He pulled on his pajama pants and headed for the kitchen.

“That coffee machine better not be broken, Mackenzie.”  He heard her laugh.  The warm feeling the sound spread in him was unfamiliar.  _Fuck._   He smiled at his roommate as he came into the kitchen.  _Dinner with Rebecca.  That’s all you need.  Dinner with Rebecca._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading!
> 
> Let me know if there is anything that you'd particularly like to see in this story... characters, slow building sexual tension, anything at all!
> 
> I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Chapter 3, in which Sloan is, well Sloan.  
> I’m still uncertain as to exactly where this piece is going, but it’s got at least 15 chapters, I think. 
> 
> Let me know if you’d like to see anything specific included!

Chapter 3

Mackenzie swept into Will’s office, fire in her eyes.

“What’s the matter now, Kenz?”  Will’s tone was patient, if a little conciliatory.  “How’s the hangover?”

“Don’t you placate me, Will.  Don’t you dare do it.”

Will stood up and raised his hands in surrender.

“What happened?”

“Did you tell Reese Lansing that we would add a Twitter scroll to our broadcast?”

_Uh oh.  We’re on thin ice here._ “No.  I absolutely would not have committed to anything like that without talking to you first.”  She waited, arms crossed.  The silence rolling off her in waves was deafening.  “I did mention that it might be something we would _consider_.”  He reflexively took a step back to shield himself from the explosion that he knew would be forthcoming.  Reese and Leona had been adamant at dinner last night that something had to change; Mackenzie had brought back the integrity to the News Night broadcast and swept all the human interest pieces right out the door.  She had done it swiftly, and she had done it with zero concern for the ratings, the advertisers, or the Lansing family.

“WILL!  That’s not an option.”  She threw up her hands and began to pace.  “We are a serious news show.  Twitter has no place in our studio.”

“Mackenzie!  Stop!”  He rounded his desk and put a hand on each of her arms, stilling her.  “We’ve got to do something.  Our numbers… well, they aren’t great.  And if we want to keep doing to show that we want to do, we’ve got to make some concessions.”  _You don’t want to worry about the numbers, Kenz.  That’s what you’ve got me for._

She looked into the eyes of the only man that she really trusted and found raw, unmasked emotion.  His eyes begged her to understand.

“We _have_ made quite the turn from where the show was six weeks ago.”  Mackenzie felt Will’s fingers squeeze her arms gently, a sure sign that he understood the allowance she was making.  “E block and F.  Only.”  She saw him relax slightly.  “Why am I so godforsaken fast to abandon my principles for you?”  She smiled, taking pleasure in his apparent satisfaction with their bargain.

“It’s my boyish charm, Kenz,” he smiled meaningfully at her.  “And you haven’t abandoned anything.  It’s a compromise, and we will make it work.”

“Boyish charm?  Billy, do you know how old you are?”  He shrugged and smiled sheepishly at her.  Mackenzie felt a flutter in the pit of her stomach as his smile caught her.  Immediately, she turned and headed out of the office.  “We’ve got a rundown meeting.”

“Not for half an hour!” he called after her retreating back.

“Fuck. Fuck fuck,” Mac muttered to herself as she made a bee-line for her office.

“Mac?”  Sloan’s concerned voice broke through what Mac hadn’t realized had become an external monologue.  “You okay?”  The up and coming economics reporter, a recent hire on Mac’s advice, followed Mackenzie into her office.

“Sure!  Why?”  Mac smiled at her old friend.

“You just walked out of Will’s office saying ‘fuck fuck fuck’.”

Mac blanched.  “Out loud?”

“No, Mackenzie.  I can read your mind.”  Sloan made herself comfortable on the couch.  “Yes, out loud.  What happened?”

“Nothing, Sloan.”  Mac’s voice wavered slightly.  She took a deep breath and spoke again.  “Nothing happened.”  _My stomach flip-flopped when my best friend smiled at me._ “Everything is fine.”

Sloan fired back a look of utter disbelief.

“Fine.  Let’s talk about something more interesting than your evasiveness.  I need extra time tonight.”

Mac relaxed, grateful for the change in topic.  Her demeanor immediately shifted back into control mode.  Executive producing--- that was her strong suit.

“Extra time?  For what?”

“To teach people to subtract with their fingers, just like you.”

“You get one of those a year, pal.  That was it.”

“Do you really want me to start explaining economic theory just so you can zone out and tell me that it’s fine as long as Will approves?”  Sloan’s tone was pointed; Mac wasn’t well-versed in the economy, and though Sloan loved her, explaining her pitches twice wasn’t efficient.

“You’re very spunky today.” 

“I ate my Wheaties.”  Mac leveled a hard stare at her, and Sloan backtracked.  “I’m antsy.  I’m doing five minutes a night on News Night.  I’ve got fifteen in the middle of the day, while everyone who gives a shit about the economy is out affecting it.  I’m trying to make a difference, and I don’t know that I am.”

“Sloan, you’ve only been here for 4 weeks.  Give it time.”

“I had my own show at CNN, Mac.  I had forty-two minutes to affect change.  I came here because you promised me that you were doing something important here.”

“We _are_ doing something important.  I promise you we are.”  Sloan looked at her, and Mac carefully weighed her next words.  “We can’t push it any harder right now.  Reese Lansing is putting pressure on Will already.  I don’t think we can pack any more serious content into the show until the ratings stabilize.”

Sloan stood and smoothed some nonexistent wrinkles from her dress.

“We can wait to revisit this in a month.  If we’re still unsettled in the ratings, though Mac, I’m going to reexamine my options.”

“Alright.  That’s fair.  I appreciate your patience.”

Sloan leaned over Mac’s desk and smiled conspiratorially.

“So, living with McAvoy.  How’s that going?”  Sloan’s eyebrows danced up and down with suggestion.

“He’s my best friend, Sloan.  Stop waggling your eyebrows at me.”

“Cut the crap, Mac.  He’s handsome.  You’re gorgeous.  And you’re both unattached.  You’re telling me that all those roommate dinners and sharing a laundry room haven’t yielded anyone throwing anyone else up against a wall and---“

“Sloan, I’m begging you not to finish that sentence.  I trust Will with my life.  We’re not sleeping together.”

“The two aren’t mutually exclusive, Mackenzie.”

“Enough.  That’s enough.”

Sloan backed away from Mac’s desk, edging toward the door.

“Okay, okay!  I’ll let it go for now.”  She nudged the door open with her hip and gave Mac a blinding smile.  “Methinks thou doth protest too much, though.”  And with that, Sloan swept out of the office.  She heard a thunk as something hit the door behind her.  “Whiteboard eraser,” she postured to herself with a smug smile.

Mac dropped her head into her hands at her desk.  _This is not happening.  Just get it together, Mackenzie.  You’re lonely, and Will is a good guy.  Breathe through it._ The ringing of her desk phone interrupted her mental pep talk.

“This is Mac.”

“It’s Will.”

“H-hey.”

“You okay?  You ran out of here pretty fast a few minutes ago.”

“Had my schedule confused.”

“Alright.”  He paused.  “Lunch after the rundown meeting?  Something terrible and greasy to take care of the last of that hangover?”

Mac smiled.  “That sounds good, Billy.”

“Good.”

He disconnected the call, unable to explain why it made him so happy that she would make time in the middle of her work day for lunch with him.  Unbeknownst to Will, Mac was grinning at her phone, wondering the same thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I apologize for switching between internal monologues in this chapter. I usually try really hard not to commit such crimes. I did feel like it was clear whose head we were in, but if it wasn’t, please let me know. I can make the edits PDQ.  
> Next chapter, we’ll get the resolution of Rebecca and Will. This chapter got away from me, and instead of being 200 words at the beginning of the chapter, it became it's own short chapter. In the interest of not posting a 7,000-word chapter, I cut it off here. Chapter 4 will pick up later this same day.
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you thought! I absolutely love hearing from y'all!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter doesn't do a lot of moving forward, but it does provide the backstory of how Mackenzie ended up with the broken heart that sent her running from the city.
> 
> We'll see the Rebecca-Will-Mac dynamic next chapter, which I know I promised this chapter, but I mean it this time! I promise fluff and fun in chapter 5.

Chapter 4

 _Text- from Will McAvoy:_ Order me a slice of pepperoni, please.  I’m half a block away.

 _Text- to Will McAvoy:_ Relatively certain that you’re the one running late and should, therefore, be buying my lunch, not the other way around.  And speaking of, how are you late?  You left five minutes before me.

 _Text- from Will McAvoy:_ Don’t you still have my credit card from the other night?

Mackenzie grinned.  Yes, yes she did have Will’s credit card.  And she would definitely be getting the supreme if it was Will’s treat.  Mac stepped forward and placed their order.  Pizza was definitely what the doctor ordered today.  _I’m just too old for tequila on a weeknight._  

A steady stream of people moved through the small pizza shop, and Mac focused on getting their fountain drinks and scoping a table that she could grab as soon as its occupants left.  With a feeling of immense satisfaction, she spotted a table in the back that was imminently available.  She moved toward it purposefully.

“Well hey, Mac.  When did you get back to the country?”

Mackenzie’s face visibly paled, and she could feel the blood rushing in her ears.  Fighting every instinct to drop the drinks she was carrying and flee, Mac gripped the cups so hard that her knuckles immediately whitened.  Dragging in an uneven breath, she gingerly set the drinks on the table she had been closest to and turned to face the man.

“Bry-Brian.”  Mackenzie wasn’t sure how long she would be able to stay on her feet.  The world seemed to be quaking, and the room was definitely spinning.  Later, she would lambaste herself for such a visceral reaction to the man, but in that moment, all she could do was hang on and try to remain upright.

Before she could attempt more words, a strong arm slid around her waist, and a nose gently nuzzled the side of her head.  _Will._ She breathed in, the familiar scent of her best friend steadying her.  She felt his fingers tighten at her waist, pulling her in tight against him, and his lips pressed to her temple in a tender kiss. 

“Just go with it,” he whispered in her ear.  Mac relaxed into his arm, allowing him to take her weight.  Her fingers laced with his free hand, and she smiled up at him.  “Hi, honey,” he said, full voice.  “I’m sorry I’m late.  I got caught in a meeting.”  And then, as if noticing Brian for the first time since entering the restaurant, Will spared a glance for the shorter man.  “Brenner.  If we’re finished here?”  He steered Mackenzie around Brian, pausing as she retrieved their drinks, and ushered her into the booth at the back of the pizzeria.

Will slid into the booth next to her and draped an arm across Mac’s shoulders possessively.  She let herself be pulled against him, both her and Will facing the back of the shop.  His lips were in her hair near her ear again, and his voice was calm and quiet in her brain.

“Just stay right where you are, Kenz, for another minute.  He’s still staring, but he’ll be leaving any second.”  She nodded against him.  They sat like that for a few minutes, the picture of intimacy, while memories of the last time he had encountered Brian Brenner flooded into Will’s mind.

_The phone had rung on a predictably cold and rainy night.  The emergency room at New York Pres had found his number in Mackenzie’s records as her ‘contact in case of emergency’.  He had left his apartment at a dead run, caught a cab, and had arrived at the hospital soaked to the skin._

_“Where is she?” he had demanded the information from the duty nurse._

_“I’m sorry, sir,” the nurse had said with infuriating calm, “who are you looking for?”_

_“Mackenzie Morgan McHale,” Will growled, seeming to grow taller with each word.  The nurse drew herself up to her full height, challenging Will._

_“And you are?”_

_“Her emergency contact, Will McAvoy.”  He thrust his ID at the woman, desperately needing her cooperation.  The nurse had checked his name against her records and nodded once.  Will felt a small knot in his stomach relax._

_“She’s this way, Mr. McAvoy,” the nurse spoke over her shoulder, coming around the desk and leading Will through double doors into the critical care unit._

_“Oh god,” he choked out, pausing at the patient door that the nurse had indicated.  “Is she going to be okay?”_

_The nurse offered Will a sympathetic look.  She opened the door and gestured Will through it._

_“Sit with her.  Hold her hand.  Talk to her.  She isn’t conscious, but that doesn’t mean she can’t hear you.”_

_Will nodded and stepped into the room.  In a bed that seemed far too large for her petite frame lay his best friend.  He choked back a startled gasp at the bruises and swelling on her face.  The crown of her head was wrapped in gauze.  With immense gratitude, he noted that she was breathing on her own.  The oxygen cannula wasn’t hissing in a way that would indicate a strong push of oxygen either.  Small blessings, he thought._

_“Oh Kenz,” he spoke to her still form, “what the hell happened?”  The nurse’s instructions stayed with Will, and he pulled a chair alongside the bed and took Mackenzie’s hand.  “You’ve got to be okay, Mackenzie.  Do you hear me?  It’s not an option for you to quit on me now.”  He continued to talk to her until the door opened, and a doctor entered._

_“Mr. McAvoy?  I’m Dr. Braithwaite.  I’ve been assigned Ms. McHale’s case.”_

_“Do you know what happened?”_

_“I know that she was found at the bottom of a stairwell.”_

_“She fell?  It was those godforsaken heels that she refuses to give up.”  Will paused as the doctor shook her head._

_“The paramedics and police say that it’s unlikely she fell.”  Will’s blank look prompted the doctor to continue.  “They think she was pushed, sir.”_

_“Please, call me Will.”  His words sounded inane to his own ears, but they were all he could come up with in the moment.  “Who… who did this to her?”  His hands never loosened their grip on Mackenzie’s._

_“I’m sorry, si--- Will.  I don’t know anything more than what I was told when they brought her in.”  Will nodded.  “I can tell you that hit her head, and she’ll probably be unconscious for several hours.  The results of the CT scan show a minor subdural hematoma.  We’ll do another scan in a few hours to make sure that it hasn’t gotten worse.”_

_“I’m sorry,” Will said, shaking his head.  “What does that mean?”_

_“Her brain is bleeding a little.  Right now, we don’t think that we will need surgery to relieve the pressure, but we need to check again in a couple of hours.”_

_“Will she be okay?”  His voice broke then, and Will sank back into the chair behind him._

_“We can’t say for sure yet.  Brain injuries are unpredictable.  We’ll know more in a few hours.”  She checked the outputs on several monitors and smiled tentatively at Will.  “You should go home, and get some sleep.  She’ll be out for a while, yet.”_

_Will bristled.  “I’m not leaving her.”_

_Dr. Braithwaite nodded her understanding.  “I’ll be back in a few hours.”_

_Will continued to cling to Mackenzie’s limp hand and talked to her until his voice went hoarse.  At some point, he laid his head down next to her fingers and shut his eyes, allowing exhaustion to claim him._

_Commotion in the hallway roused Will.  Angry, raised voices drew closer to the door, but Will couldn’t make out what was being said.  As a shadow blocked the door window, a familiar voice came into focus._

_“That’s my fiancé, you asshole.  You can’t keep me out of there.”  Will shot out of the chair and headed for the door as the orderly standing in front of the door spoke._

_“I’m sorry, sir.  It’s a cleared list only, and we haven’t received your name from the police.”_

_Will flung open the door and barked at the orderly.  “Stay with her.”  Will’s hands fisted of their own accord in Brian’s shirt, and he shoved the smaller man roughly into the wall of the corridor.  “Did you do this to her?”  Will’s voice was barely above a whisper, and Brian’s eyes grew wide in fear.  “Did. You. Do. This. To. Her., Brenner?”  Will enunciated each word with precision.  Brian tried to speak but seemed unable to find his voice, other than a squeak.  “Don’t make me ask you again.”_

_“I was drunk, and she was being---“ Brian didn’t get a chance to finish whatever justification he had concocted as Will’s fist crashed through the wall next to his head._

_“You’re leaving, Brenner.  You’re leaving the city.  The fucking state.  Fall off the edge of the world.  I don’t give a shit.”  Will brought his face closer to Brian’s.  “I swear to god, if you ever come near her again, I will kill you.  If you contact her, I will end you.  And if you think I’m kidding, even a little bit…” Will didn’t finish, preferring to let the threat hang in the air.  “My security will meet you at the apartment in half an hour.  They will supervise you getting your shit and getting the fuck out of her life.  Do I make myself very clear?”_

_Brian nodded weakly and sagged against the wall as Will released him.  Will dusted off his hands in disgust and turned back toward Mackenzie’s room._

_“Is she okay?” Brian’s voice stopped Will in his tracks._

_“You don’t have the right to ask that question.”  Will pushed open the door, but then stopped and turned back to the quivering mass that was Brian.  “Brenner?”  Brian looked weakly up from the ground where he was sitting.  “If I see one word written about her anywhere, I don’t care if you never met the guy who wrote it, one word and I will make you wish you were never born.”_

_With his final threat lingering in the hallway, Will ushered the orderly out of Mackenzie’s room and resumed his unwavering vigil at her bedside.  More than twelve hours later, when she would wake, she would find her fingers numb from being clasped in Will’s for so long._

Movement near the front of the restaurant stirred Will from his reverie.  He squeezed Mac’s fingers, still laced in his own, and slid back from her.  “Brenner’s gone, and so is the guy he was with.”

As Will was speaking, their pizza slices arrived, and he shifted to the other side of the table to give them both room to eat.

“What the fuck, Billy?”  Mackenzie sounded genuinely confused and mildly annoyed.

“I’ve never seen you look that way,” Will said around bits of pizza, attempting nonchalance.   “You went fucking ashen.  So, I stepped in.”

“By insinuating that we’re sleeping together?”

“By insinuating that we’re in love, Kenz.  I don’t touch the women I’m just sleeping with like that, especially in public.”

Mackenzie’s eyebrows climbed.  “Well then, I’m honored that the famous Will McAvoy would touch me _in public_.”

“You’re pissed at ME?”  Will stopped and got his tone of voice back under control.  “How are you possibly pissed at me?”

“Jesus, Will!  How long do you think it’s going to take for Brian to put out the word that I’m sleeping with my boss?  Huh?  How long?”

“Okay, well one, breathe.  And two, he’s not going to say a word.  I promise.”  _Take my word for it, Mackenzie._

Mackenzie felt tears pricking the back of her eyes as the adrenaline rush started to wear off.  She closed her eyes and leaned back against the booth.  Will was instantly at her side.

“Hey, Kenz… are you okay?”  Mac nodded silently, trying to ride out the intense surge of emotions that were coursing through her body without breaking down.  “It’s okay, Mackenzie.”  Will’s tone was gentle.  “He’s never going to hurt you again.  I’m never going to let him near you again.”  He felt her taking measured breaths against him.  “I’m sorry, pal.  Really.  I wasn’t thinking.”  _I wonder if I could pay to have him assigned to Siberia or Antarctica._

“No, Billy,” Mac sat up straighter, “I’m sorry I shouted.”  She gave Will a gentle nudge with her elbow, needing some physical space.  He moved back to the other side of the table.  “I just wasn’t expecting to see him here.”  She thought for a moment.  “I wasn’t expecting to see him anywhere.”

“I don’t know what he’s doing here.  Do you want to file for an order of protection?”

Mackenzie shook her head once and then again at Will’s dark look. 

“He’s not a threat to me, Will.”  After a moment, he nodded his agreement.  “At some point--- I’m not saying now--- but at some point, Billy, I want you to tell me about that night.”  Will’s eyes dropped to the slice in front of him.  “I don’t remember much.  The fight.  Waking up to your ridiculously messy hair.  Your broken knuckles.”  She watched him absently flex the fingers on the hand that had gone through that hospital wall almost three years before.  “But we’ve never talked about it.”

“Well, let’s not talk about it now.”  Will’s voice was rough with emotion.  He attacked his pizza with a knife and fork, quickly reducing it to tiny pieces.  He continued to saw at the dough until Mackenzie laid a hand on top of his.

“I’m right here, Billy.  It happened, and we can’t change that.  But, he’s never come near me, and based on the look on his face today, I wouldn’t think he would dare cross you.”  She paused and waited for his eyes to find hers.  “You’re going to need another slice of pizza.”  She smiled openly at him.

“Yeah.”  He smiled back at his best friend, marveling at her resilience and strength.

“Here,” she said, deftly dividing her slice in two.  “Eat half of mine.  We can send an intern out for sandwiches later when we get hungry.”  She slid half the pizza onto a napkin and thrust it at Will.

“Abusing the interns?”  He raised an eyebrow at her and accepted the napkin-clad pizza.  “Who are you and what have you done with Mackenzie?”

She shrugged one shoulder, grinned mischievously at him, and took a large bite of her pizza.  Will chuckled and began pulling the onions off of his slice, draping the vegetables over Mackenzie’s pizza as she ate it.

“Mmmm Will,” she said, swallowing a bite, “I don’t understand your taste.  Onion is delicious.”

“I don’t want my audience to be able to smell my breath, Kenz.”

She snorted at him with skepticism and tossed a balled up napkin at him.  They laughed together, the traces of anger and fear that had tinged the first minutes of their lunch almost completely diffused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I always love hearing what you think!
> 
> And any new requests for things you'd like to see happen are always welcome. I'm working on the ones that have come through, and they all fit in nicely so far!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, apologies for the protracted time between posts. I'm on the road for work, and it's absurdly hard to find time to write and edit.
> 
> Next, I hope you're still with me after the unannounced break!

Chapter 5

The show that night went smoothly, though unremarkably.  Will knew he would be hearing from Charlie about the lackluster broadcast.  _He’ll just have to get over it for tonight._ Seeing Brian had affected him more than he cared to admit, and Mac’s sparse communication through the headset during their broadcast told him that she wasn’t completely over it either.

Will shuffled some papers across his desk and back again, aimlessly.  Mac usually came in once she had wrapped up her post-show chat with the team to discuss their plans for the evening.  _Plans.  Fuck.  Rebecca._   Will was far from convinced that he wanted to leave Mackenzie alone for the evening.  While she hadn’t expressed any need to spend time with him that night, the look on her face when she had seen Brenner haunted him.

The minutes crawled by, and still the office door did not swing open.  _Patience.  She’ll come.  Just have patience._   Even as he waited assuring himself that she wouldn’t have gone without at least coming in to say goodbye, his mind wandered.  _Rebecca._   Flashbacks to the last time he had seen her floated unbidden through the lens of his mind’s focus.  Fingers clutching expensive sheets.  Damp hair plastered against sweaty foreheads.  An encounter filled with lust and need, satisfying but ultimately meaningless to either of them.  A frown creased his forehead.  The impending release didn’t hold the appeal that it had held last that morning.  He wasn’t comfortable leaving Mackenzie alone tonight.  Unless she appeared in his office in a completely different form than she had been earlier, he wasn’t prepared to disappear with Rebecca. _Where the fuck is she?_   He put all thoughts of Rebecca out of his mind, planning to figure out his evening once he had a firm grasp on Mackenzie’s frame of mind.

Frustrated, he slammed his hands down on his desk and shoved his office door open.  The bullpen was almost completely deserted.  He glanced toward Mac’s office and was greeted with darkness.

“Where is she?” he growled at the few remaining staffers.

“I—uh—she left just after we were clear.”

“She left?”  Incredulity tinged his tone.  The staffer—he really needed to learn their names—nodded.  He really needed to develop a rapport with them, too.  The terrified expressions they wore around him were growing irksome to him.  “Alright.”  He turned back toward his office, but stopped and turned back.  “Thanks,” Will offered a smile with his thanks to the brave intern who had provided him with information about Mackenzie’s whereabouts.  The beaming smile he received in return codified his resolution to make more of an effort with them.

Without taking the time to pack any of the papers from his desk, Will grabbed his jacket and briefcase and left the newsroom without further comment.

Twenty minutes later, the elevator opened, granting him access to the apartment.

“Ma-cken-zie!” he yelled before the doors were all the way open.  “Are you here?” 

“In the kitchen!” came the reply.  He sagged with relief, knowing that he wouldn’t have been able to relax until he knew where she was and that she was safe.  _Okay.  Look cool, McAvoy.  She doesn’t need to know that you’re floundering, too._

“You certainly got out of the office quickly,” he said, coming around the corner into the kitchen and stopping short.  “Beck—Rebecca.  Hey.”  He felt most of the color drain from his face.  _Dropped the ball on that one, McAvoy._

Mackenzie’s eyes sparkled, and her smile was mirthful.  “Rebecca was waiting for you when I got home.  I invited her in to wait with a glass of wine.”

“I didn’t realize that you had a new roommate, William.”  Rebecca’s tone was neutral, but her expression displayed barely concealed amusement.

“I moved in just after I got back to the country,” Mackenzie offered, by way of explanation.  It didn’t occur to Will to wonder why the two women hadn’t covered that in their time together before he arrived.

“It seemed like a good idea,” Will said with a shrug.  His words were directed at Rebecca, but his eyes never left Mackenzie.  She clearly understood exactly what Rebecca was doing there.  The realization made him slightly nauseous, though he couldn't pinpoint why.  He and Mackenzie had never been critical of the relationships the other carried on.  He looked over at Rebecca and offered her a weak smile.  _What the hell do we do now?_

"Well, I guess I'm going to go," Mackenzie said lightly.  Will's head turned back in her direction so quickly that he was momentarily disoriented.

"Where are you going?  I thought you were home tonight."

"Will," Mackenzie said patiently, but with a head nod toward Rebecca, "were you and Rebecca planning on going out?"

_Well, fuck._ "No.  We weren't planning on going anywhere."  _Answer only what you're asked._

"Right," Mackenzie spoke slowly, as though explaining the situation to a small child, "then I'm going to go to Sloan's for a while."  She gave Rebecca a quick hug.  "It was good to see you, Halliday."

"You too, Mac.  We'll have drinks soon."

"Definitely."  Mac turned to Will.  She couldn't blame him for his fling with Rebecca, and it was completely outside of her purview to care who he was sleeping with.  Still, and for reasons that either she wasn't able to identify or didn't care to more fully examine, she didn't like it.  "Billy, thanks for lunch today.  I know it didn't seem like it, but I appreciated it."  She stood on her tiptoes and brushed a light kiss across his cheek."  She grabbed her purse.  "I'll see you at work tomorrow."

Will stood stock still for a minute; the elevator doors dinged closed behind Mackenzie.  An overwhelming sense of wrongness settled over him.  Mackenzie lived here; this was her home, too.  The evening that he had planned with Rebecca wasn’t right if it chased Mackenzie away from home.

"You better call down and have the doorman stop her, Will.  You'll never catch her if you wait for the elevator."  Rebecca was holding the landline out to him.

"What?"  Will's confused expression told Rebecca all she needed to know.

"Stop her at the door.  I've known you for ten years, and I've never seen you look like that.  Not even on the day you married that twit, Nina."  Will gave her a look.  "You're running out of chances, William.  Don't blow this.”

"Honest to god, Becca, I don't know what the fuck you're talking about right now."

Rebecca shook her head and picked up her purse.  She gripped Will's upper arm lightly for a moment as she walked past him.

"Trust me, Will.  Don't let her walk out that door tonight."

He stared at the phone in his hand for just a moment more before pressing the call button.

"Yes, hi.  Could you please stop Miss McHale in the lobby and ask her to come back up, please?"  He waited for confirmation that Mackenzie hadn't yet left the building and then thanked the doorman.  _What the hell am I doing?_

The elevator dinged, and Rebecca stepped inside.  With a look back at Will, who was still holding the phone and looking confused by his own actions, she chuckled to herself.

"You'll figure it out, Will," she called as the doors closed.  In the quiet of the elevator, Rebecca momentarily lamented losing Will in the capacity of playmate before retrieving her phone and firing off a text to Reese.  The response was instant, and Rebecca smiled as her evening was saved.  As the elevator opened to the lobby, Mackenzie's confused expression met Rebecca.  "Just talk to him, Mac."  Rebecca strode purposefully past Mackenzie and through the lobby.  "Goodnight, Manny," she nodded to the doorman, who smiled his response.

Mackenzie leaned her purse close to the RFID reader in the elevator and pressed the button to send the elevator up to her home.  _Temporary home.  This isn't your home.  It's his._  She deflated a little at the thought.  For all of her achievements, the only thing that Mac desperately wanted was a home of her own, someplace that she shared a role in creating, someplace that she felt ownership over.  The elevator opened, and Mackenzie dropped her purse and kicked out of her shoes just outside the elevator doors.

"Billy?  Is everything okay?"  She had expected to find him waiting by the doors with some sort of news that would have justified him having the doorman send her upstairs like a wayward schoolgirl.  She found him sitting on a barstool in the kitchen, glass of scotch in his hand, bottle uncapped next to him.

“How about a drink, Kenz?”  He nudged the bottle toward her.

“Sure.”  She poured herself a three-finger drink, and climbed up onto the barstool next to Will.  “What’s going on?”

“Do you want to talk about the night… the night that—“ he stumbled through the words.

“The night that Brian put me in the hospital?”  Will nodded, eyes never leaving his drink.  “Do _you_ want to talk about it?”

“I feel like we should.”  He took a fortifying sip of his drink and finally made eye contact with her.  “There’s some things that you should probably know.”

Mackenzie lifted the bottle from the counter and tugged lightly on Will’s sleeve.

“It will be harder for you to avoid looking at me from the couch, Billy.”  She settled cross-legged, facing Will.  He sat facing forward, but he cheated his shoulders toward her.  The nervousness in his posture unsettled Mackenzie, and she laid a hand on his knee.  “He’s the one who tossed me down a flight of stairs and abandoned me, not you.  What on earth are you so wound up about?”

And so, he began to describe the night to Mackenzie.  He began with the phone call, and paused just before the commotion in the hallway that had announced Brian’s arrival to the story.  Will tilted his glass up to his lips, draining it fully.  He refilled it, and turned to completely face his best friend.

“He was there, Kenz.  In the hallway, outside your room.  He admitted to drunkenly sending you over the railing, but he was white as a sheet.”  Mackenzie’s eyes grew wide, and Will placed a hand on hers, entreating her to hold her peace while he finished his recounting.  “I put my fist through the wall about an inch from his head, and I told him that if he wasn’t out of town in the next hour, I’d kill him.  That’s what happened to my knuckles.  That’s how they ended up broken.  There was no patch of ice on the way to the hospital.”  _Tell her everything.  She deserves to know._   “I meant it, Kenz.  I would have killed him.  And I think he knew it, too.  My security watched him pack and escorted him into Connecticut.  I’m the reason he abandoned you.”  He dropped his glance to their entangled fingers.  “Mackenzie, I’m sorry.  The thought of him being anywhere near you turned my stomach.”  His head came up, and his eyes narrowed slightly.  “And then you packed your bags and went to fucking Peshawar.  I couldn’t protect you there.  I could barely keep tabs on you there.”  He stopped again, battling his instincts.  Mackenzie wiggled her fingers under his, encouraging him to continue.  “I paid people to keep his assignments state-side.  He tried like hell to get over there to you.  I wouldn’t—couldn’t let that happen.”  Will allowed himself to fall back against the couch cushions, spent from his admission.

Mackenzie was silent, utterly so.  Will couldn’t bring himself to look at her.

“Do you know why I went to Peshawar, Will?”

“To get over having your heart,” he finally looked up at her, “and your head smashed up by Brian.”

“Partly, yes.  And partly because I was humiliated.”

“Humili—“  Mackenzie didn’t let him finish.

“I let you speak, Will.”  He nodded and closed his mouth, but his hand grabbed hers and gripped it fiercely.

“I didn’t know what had happened,” her voice was quiet, but grew into a desperate and angry tone as she continued, “and you couldn’t be bothered to share with me the choices that you made.”  She pulled her hand out from Will’s grasp.  “Choices you made on my behalf.  All I knew was that I was hurt, and he was gone.  What a tragic fucking story.  Of course I was humiliated!”

“You’ve got every right to be angry right now, Kenz.”

“You’re goddamn right, I do.”  She stood, facing the fireplace and away from Will.

“Would you have gone back to him?”  Mackenzie almost missed the question; Will’s tone was so soft.

“Excuse me?”  She turned to face him.

“Would you have gone back to him, Mackenzie?  After he left you for dead at the bottom of a stairwell and didn’t come looking for you for hours, would you have let him be in your life?”

Mackenzie stepped back as though she had been slapped.  When she spoke, it was with a terse archness that Will had rarely heard from her.

“I don’t see how that is any of your concern, Billy.”  Without sparing him another glance, she walked out of the living room, and Will heard her bedroom door close.

He poured himself another scotch, letting the warmth of the alcohol settle in his stomach as he contemplated the exchange.  He weighed his decisions then and the wisdom of telling her now.  And when that puzzle grew too cumbersome for what was become a scotch-infused frame of mind, he turned his attention to Rebecca’s parting words to him earlier.  _You’ll figure it out, Will._   His internal debate raged.  _Figure what out?_   _And how, exactly, do I look at her?_  

Unable to come to any suitable conclusions, Will rose from the couch and made his way down the hall to Mackenzie’s door.  He rapped lightly twice, turned the knob, and gently pushed the door open.  Mackenzie was curled up on her bed, tears staining her cheeks.  Instinctively, Will climbed into bed behind her and pulled her into him, allowing the contours of her body to meld with his.

“Why did you call me back upstairs tonight?”  She could feel his heart beating against her back, and she relaxed into him.  There was something inexplicable about how comforting his solid weight against her back was, even in her current state of anger and confusion.  “It couldn’t have been to have a night like this.”

“I don’t know, Kenz.”  He paused taking the scent of her into his lungs, contemplating her question.  “Honestly, it felt wrong for Rebecca to be here and you… not to be.”

“Why?”  He stiffened behind her.

“Fuck.  Does it matter why?”  She recoiled, and he pulled her back in to him.  “I’m sorry.”  He kissed the back of her head gently.  “You’re asking me a question that I’ve been asking myself.  I don’t know why.  I didn’t like you feeling like you had to leave your home because of me.”

“It’s your home, Billy.  I’m just a guest here.”  She sounded sad and a little bit defeated.

“Look at me, Kenz.”  He tugged her shoulder, turning her toward him.  When her misty eyes met his, he continued.  “This is your home, too.”

“It’s not, though.”  She looked at his chin, avoiding the hurt that was filling his eyes.  “You’ve been incredibly generous, letting me live here… but it isn’t my home.  I’ve got to build that for myself.”

He let her words sink in, unsure of how to respond.  Her forehead rested against his chest, and he took in the closeness of her.  His fingers tangled in her hair with the intimate familiarity that had developed since Mackenzie had moved in.  Her breathing slowed as she settled down, and after a few minutes, he was fair sure that she was asleep.  _Cannot hold her scotch._ Certainty settled over him with a suddenness that startled him.  _It’s her._ Will eased himself away from the sleeping form of his best friend and silently left her bedroom.

_Text- to Rebecca Halliday:_ How the hell did you know?

_Text- from Rebecca Halliday:_ Does that question really merit a response?

_Text- from Reese Lansing:_ Could you not have an existential crisis, right now?

_Text- from Rebecca Halliday:_ Sorry.  Reese is feeling left out and nosy.  Let’s talk tomorrow.

Will’s eyebrows climbed quickly and an amused smile crept across his lips.  Of course Rebecca had a backup plan.  _I guess I’m off the hook for putting her out tonight._   He twisted the top back on the scotch and flipped off the lights around the apartment.  As he passed Mackenzie’s bedroom, he peered in to check on her.  She was just where he had left her.  With great care, Will pulled a blanket from the foot of her bed up to her shoulders, switched off her overhead light, and tapped on her nightlight.

“Sweet dreams, Mackenzie,” he whispered, pulling her door closed quietly as he left the room. 

 

Will got into his bed and closed his eyes, and for the first time in years, he was excited for what tomorrow would bring.  _Tomorrow.  We’ll turn the corner, together… if she’ll have me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, friends, we're coming to a tipping point. If Will isn't going to dance around it, is Mac ready for this? We'll see... in the next two chapters.
> 
> Let me know what you thought! This didn't exactly fall out of me; it was written in starts and stops in 7 different airports. Every time I found a rhythm, it was time to board the plane. So, hopefully, you enjoyed it! My other option is to put this all on hold until my fall travel is done--- mid-November. Opinions are appreciated.
> 
> Thanks so much for sticking around!! You guys truly are the best!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today, I was stuck for six and half hours in a tiny airport that didn't have the internet. So... because I couldn't work, I wrote. And then I deleted 2,200 words and wrote some more. And so, dears and darlings, I give you Chapter 6, in which Mackenzie and Brian interact. (It's going to be okay... I promise.)
> 
> And now, I'm racing against the clock; I've got about 10 minutes of wifi. So, please excuse any formatting issues or typos that I don't catch in the copy/paste. If you see them, let me know, and I'll fix them.
> 
> Thanks so much for the encouragement to keep writing while I'm traveling. I can't tell y'all how much all of the kind words mean.

Chapter 6

Will opened his eyes to sunlight streaming through his window.  He shut them again, reassessing the conclusions he had come to the night before.  The concepts rolled over in his mind, and he allowed his sober psyche and the morning light to lend clarity to his jumbled train of thought.

_People will talk.  If Kenz and I are suddenly ‘together’, people will say that’s why Nina and I got divorced._ “Hmph.”  _Could genuinely not care less._ He rolled his shoulders, stretching the nighttime inactivity away.  _Mackenzie would care.  A lot.  That’s got to be a factor._ He curled his toes and then crisscrossed his arms, allowing his triceps to loosen.  _Her legs… fuck… her legs.  Wrapped around my waist, with that face she makes…_ Will sat up, raking his fingers through his fair and settling his palms over his eyes as he continued his internal monologue.  _No.  Just… nope.  Maybe she doesn’t… isn’t… Okay, we’ve got to talk._   With a final shake of his head, Will twisted his hips and planted both feet on the ground.

After a brief shower and an even faster shave, Will tossed on jeans and a sweater and headed for the kitchen.  Mackenzie’s door was still closed; so, Will put the coffee on and started eggs in a skillet.  Minutes later, the coffee was brewed, and the eggs were resting in their pan.  A smile played across Will’s lips as he put some bread into the toaster and depressed the lever.  _She really needs to be awake by now._   The toasted bread popped out of the countertop toaster, and Will deftly spread butter on all four pieces.  Casting a mildly skeptical eye toward Mackenzie’s door, he arranged some bacon on a pan and shoved it under the broiler, knowing it would be ready in less than ten minutes.

As his first cup of coffee was quickly consumed, Will refilled the cup.  A small growl escaped through his pursed lips.  The bacon came out of the broiler, and Will assembled his plate.  _Running out of time, Mackenzie.  Up and at ‘em, pal._   Will made short work of his breakfast and began clean up on the breakfast dishes, casting glances every few seconds to Mackenzie’s still undisturbed door.  Just as he opened his mouth to yell for his best friend to get out of bed, Mackenzie’s door was flung open.

“I’m terribly, terribly late,” she offered as she breezed into the kitchen.  Taking in the scene around her, she paused for less than a second before hastily pouring coffee into her travel-to-work mug.  “You cooked?”

“We need to talk, Kenz,”

To his surprise, Mackenzie nodded.

“You’re right, Billy.  We do.”  With decisiveness, she piled bacon and eggs on the toast and wrapped a paper towel around it.  “But later, alright?  We’ve got a lot to talk about.  I know that, but I’ve got to go.”  She offered Will a look that he couldn’t decipher.  _She doesn’t want to talk to me?_

“Are you okay, Kenz?”  Another unreadable look came his way. 

“Let’s talk about it tonight.  Alright?”

The elevator closed behind her before he could respond.  It took him a minute of stunned silence before the situation dawned on him.

_She’s pissed about Brian and what I said last night._ Frustrated, he flung the skillet he had been washing down into the sink.  _GodDAMMIT._

 

Tears pricked the back of Mackenzie’s eyelids as the elevator descended toward the lobby.  _Stop that._ She had remained in her room until the last possible minute this morning, listening to Will banging around in the kitchen.  When she had finally accepted the inevitable—she would have to see him before work—and had ventured into the kitchen, Will’s smile had been blinding and almost grateful.  _Making breakfast doesn’t fix two years of lying._ She sniffed lightly.  _Lying by omission, but still…_ Mackenzie had always believed that she and Will were above such betrayals to each other.  For two years she had put herself and her team in harrowing situations, one right after another.  The constant adrenaline surges distracted her from the questions that had followed her to the edge of the earth and back.  _I want to know why.  Why it happened.  Why he left.  Just why.  And Will KNEW.  The whole time._ She stubbornly tamped down that she had never discussed it with Will.  All he had known was that she left within a week of being released from the hospital.  There hadn’t been a going-away party; she hadn’t even allowed him a chance to say goodbye.  She hadn’t allowed anyone that luxury.  The humiliation of the entire debacle was too fresh; the shame continued to bring a blush to her cheeks at every turn.  _Brian left because Will arranged it._   In the logical part of Mackenzie’s brain, she acknowledged that there was, actually, no reason to be ashamed of what had happened.  It was neither her fault that Brian had put her in the hospital nor that Brian had tucked tail and run at Will’s insistence.

And suddenly, the weight of the questions that had never settled was crushing her.  Try as she might, she couldn’t seem to drag in a full breath.  _One breath at a time, Mackenzie.  In and out._   The uncertainty that had driven her to Peshawar returned, full-force.  She had to know.  She had to know all of it.  She had to know now.  Her hands shook visibly as she pulled her cell from her purse and dialed the familiar number.

“Brian?  It’s Mackenzie.  We need to talk.”  She leaned against the wall, struggling to keep her feet beneath her.  “Alright.  Half an hour.”  She listened.  “No.  I would prefer somewhere else.  The reading room at the Public Library at 5th and 42nd?  Fine.”  She broke the connection, gasping for air.  He hands flew to her face, and she sobbed brokenly into them until the door to the elevator dinged.  The doorman looked just as surprised to see her as she was to see him.

“Miss McHale?  Are you alright?”  He hurried on as Mackenzie tried to compose herself.  “How long have you been in there?”

“I have no idea,” she admitted with an expression that was intended to reassure the much older man.

“Do you want me to call Mr. McAvoy?”

“No!” Mackenzie yelped, almost before the words had been fully spoken.  “No,” she said again, a mask of composure fully in place.  “I’m fine.  Thank you, though.”  She stepped out of the elevator and gently patted the doorman’s arm.  With all the grace she could muster, Mackenzie strode through the lobby and outside, leaving the doorman looking at her with concern.

 

Half an hour later, Mackenzie walked into the reading room at the Public Library and immediately caught sight of Brian.  He was standing in a corner and tracking her with his eyes.  She acknowledged him with a nod and gestured toward the exit of the room.

“There’re more people here than I expected,” she said in a hushed tone as they rounded a corner into one of the restricted corridors.

“I offered my apartment.”  Brian already sounded frustrated, and Mackenzie knew from experience that he wouldn’t be in a mood to answer her questions if she provoked him about their meeting place.

“I’m sorry.  You’re right.”  The words tasted bitter on her tongue.  She was momentarily the girl that she had been when she first met him, accommodating and constantly apologetic.  She blinked away the memories and refused to let the old discontentment rise to the surface.  They turned another corner, Mackenzie steering their steps.  As they reached a locked door, she reached up and slid a key off the lintel.  “I used to do a lot of research here,” she offered with a gentle smile.  Brian said nothing.

The room was small and dimly lit, but there were two leather chairs on either side of a table.  _Perfect._ When Brian’s hand touched the small of her back, ushering her in through the open door, she visibly flinched.

“What the fuck, Mac?”

“I’m sorry.  You startled me.”  She watched his posture change, immediately becoming defensive.  “I mean, I was startled.  I wasn’t expecting to be touched.”

“You sure as hell got jumpy over there.”

_Do not engage.  Do.  Not.  Engage._ “I guess so.”  She took a seat and indicated the other chair to Brian.

“I’d rather stand.”

She shrugged noncommittally and gaged the distance between herself and the door.  _Will would be so impressed that I put myself between him and that door.  I’ve got the escape route._ One of the first things that she remembered after waking up in the hospital was Will’s lecture on safety.  _Make sure there’s no one between you and the exit route.  Trust your instincts.  If you feel like you should get out, get the fuck out._ A sigh from Brian brought Mackenzie back to the present.

“You wanted to talk, Mackenzie.”  Impatience tinged his words.  Mackenzie shuddered lightly.  That tone of voice used to send her into immediate damage control mode.

“Yes.  I did.”  She was no longer afraid of Brian Brenner.  _Because of Will._   She was capably on her own two feet, but it helped that Will was right behind her to back her up, always.  “What happened that night, Brian?  It’s pretty much a blur for me.”

For a moment, Brian’s gruff exterior dissolved, and he looked genuinely remorseful. 

“Fuck, Mac.  Is that why you wanted to talk?”

“Please, Brian.  I--- I need to know.”  She didn’t like the tone that her voice had taken, pleading with an edge of begging, but if it got her what she needed, she could live with it.

“We had been drinking pretty hard that night,” Brian began, and it was all Mac could to not to scream _‘You had been drinking hard that night.  I was afraid that I might be pregnant, and I wasn’t drinking anything!”_ She refrained; he didn’t need that piece of information.  No one did.  “We started to fight about something petty.  Honestly, I don’t even remember what we were arguing about.”  He forced his hands into his jacket pockets and began to pace.  Twice he crossed between Mackenzie and the door before he continued speaking.  “You picked up your ‘go bag’ and said you had had enough.  You were leaving, and I could go straight to hell.”  He chuckled lightly.  “I’m pretty sure you said that I could take my ego and my temper and my illogical arguments, go to hell and stay there.  You opened the door to leave, and I grabbed your ponytail…”  The words stopped, and Brain reflexively opened and closed his mouth several times.  “Jesus, do you really want to hear this?”  Mac nodded, not trusting her voice.  She was taking in every word, trying desperately to remember.  He nodded and swallowed visibly.  “I swung you around, and your face… all the color drained from it.  You dropped your bag and started clawing at my arm.  I think you were trying to break my grip, which you did.  You took about four steps backward, out of the apartment.  God, your eyes were huge, hunted.  I had never seen them that way.”  Mac could feel dampness on her cheeks, but it didn’t register in her mind that she was crying.  “I reached out to pull you back inside, and you screamed at me.  ‘I’m not going back into that apartment.  I’m leaving, and you’re not going to stop me.’  You had torn the engagement ring off and you threw it at me.  I was so fucking angry at you, and I can’t even tell you why.”  Brian’s eyes bored holes into the carpet.  “I’ve tried so hard to forget this.”

“But all I want is to remember.”  Her words were more for herself than for him, but he brought his head up and nodded.

“The ring bounced off my chest, and I lunged for you.  I guess I was going to drag you back inside and keep fighting.  I don’t know.  But when I made a grab for you, I missed.  Caught the edge of your sweater.  You pulled back and came up hard against the railing at the top of the stairs.  I knew you were afraid, and in that moment,” he paused and brought one hand up to cradle the back of his head, “in that moment, I wanted your fear.  And so you stepped toward me, probably to catch your balance and turn to run, but I stepped forward and cut off your path.  You teetered a little, and you made a blind grab for me or my shirt, I don’t know what you were reaching for.  I stepped back out of your grasp—like it was some of psychotic dance—and when your hand caught mine, I shoved it back so hard that you went over backward.  The look on your face when I shoved you, it’s the stuff of nightmares.”  Brian slid down the wall and buried his face in his hands.

“Then what happened?”  Mackenzie’s voice was rough, and she used the heel of her hand to fling the tears from her cheeks.  “What happened next, Brian?”

“I don’t know.  I took off.  I didn’t know what the fuck to do.  And then, hours later, I got word that you were at Pres, and I went to find you.  I had no idea what shape you were in.”  He looked up at her, guilt and horror etched in the lines on his face.  “I bribed a nurse to get your medical records after you left the country.  Jesus, Mac.  You almost died.”  She nodded, well aware.  “When I got to the hospital, McAvoy was already there.  You and I were supposed to get fucking married, and _he’s_ your emergency contact!  I couldn’t even process that.  So, I tried to see you, and he wouldn’t allow it.  He put his fist through a wall, and I could tell that he wanted to break my neck.  He probably should have.  I don’t know anyone who would blame him.”  Brian stretched one leg out in front of him, and the rest of the story tumbled out.  “He told me to pack my gear and get out of your life.  It didn’t take much convincing, though.  I never thought of myself as the guy to raise his hand to a woman, and there you were, in the hospital.  Where I put you.  Shit.  I probably would have left, even without his goon escorting me over the state line.  I don’t know.”  He stopped, hearing himself equivocate.  “I’m saying that a lot.  ‘I don’t know.’  But, I just don’t…”  Brian paused and waited until Mackenzie looked at him.  “I tried to find you, to get in touch with you, to apologize.  Your number was changed, and you were gone, just gone.  Disappeared without a trace.  And then stories started coming across the wire from caves in the Middle East.  Byline? Mackenzie McHale.  Then yesterday, there you were, having pizza.”  He stood up and resumed his pacing.  “I guess that’s the whole story.”

“You would have left regardless?”  There was a hopefulness in her voice.  She wanted desperately to be able to absolve Will in her own mind.

“Yeah.  That’s pretty shitty, huh?  But, yeah.  I would have left.  Maybe not the state, but we were done.  I think we were probably done before that night, though, and we were both too stubborn to admit it.”

“Maybe.”

“But you’re doing alright?  McAvoy looks at you the way I always wanted you to look at me.  Even after I put a ring on your finger, I couldn’t measure up.”  He scoffed.  “I guess that was going to be the way it ended up from the beginning.”

She opened her mouth to deny it.  _We’re not together.  It was an act, for your benefit.  He doesn’t love me.  I don’t… He doesn’t love me._ Without saying a word, Mackenzie stood up and moved toward the door.

“Mac?”

She turned to face him, hand on the doorknob.  “Yeah.”  It was permission for him to continue, not encouragement.

“I’m sorry.”

She walked out of the room, pausing only to replace the key over top of the door.  Outside the front doors of the library, Mac pulled in a deep breath, her first of the day.  Unsure of what she was feeling or even how she was supposed to feel, she hailed a cab and directed it to the AWM building.  She entered the building with a gait that showed a purpose of direction.  Only one thing in the world felt certain.

 

The door to Will’s office swung open with such force that Will jumped and came to his feet.

“Kenz?  Where the hell have you been?”  The door closed behind her, and she rounded his desk.  He realized that she was heading for him with only a millisecond to brace himself before she threw herself into his arms.

“I’m so angry with you, Billy,” she said, face buried between his chest and his arm.  “I can’t even begin to describe the things I’m feeling toward you right now.”

“Oh.  Okay, but…” he cut himself off and pulled her just a little closer, marveling at how well she fit in his arms, how right she felt. 

“I saw Brian.”

“I know, Kenz.”

“No, I mean just now.  That’s where I was.  I saw Brian.  I made him tell me about that night.”

“What?” Will roared and set Mackenzie back from him.  His hands skimmed her arms, shoulders, and cheeks; he turned her around, examining her.  “Are you okay?  Did he hurt you?”

“I’m fine, Billy.  I _needed_ to know.  It was eating me alive.”

He gathered her close again, and her arms went around his waist, as if without her permission.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes,” she answered quickly.  “I mean, I don’t know.  What am I supposed to be feeling right now?  After he told me what he remembers, the only place I wanted to go was home.  But that isn’t a place for me.  It’s you, Billy.”  _You sound crazy, Mackenzie.  Crazy and needy._ “So, here I am.”  She stepped back and looked up at him.  “I’m still viscerally angry with you, but you’re home.”  _Definitely crazy and needy._

“You’re my home, too, Mackenzie.  I’m so sorry that I hurt you, indescribably so.  I can’t justify what I did.  It was instinct, and I don’t know that it was the right one.”  He dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose.  “So you be angry with me, and I’ll take it on the chin.  And when you’re done being angry, then we’ll talk.”

She beamed at him and nodded.

“Now, I have to go do work.”

He chuckled and watched his best friend, a woman with whom he was absolutely falling in love, leave his office to go do the news.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so there it is.
> 
> Were you satisfied with Brian and Mac's interaction? Are we all okay still? She's definitely not going to go back to him, not even for a fling. Not in this universe.
> 
> Let me know what you think, pretty please!
> 
> (I'm getting to the formalwear that was requested early on, as well as Charlie. I didn't forget. Honest!!)
> 
> As always, thanks for reading. It's such a treat to write for such a kind audience.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, friends! I know it's been a while... and I'm so sorry for that! You wouldn't believe the travel schedule I'm keeping right now. But here's Chapter 7. It's a building up to a big action chapter, but I'm pretty okay with how it turned out. Hopefully, y'all enjoy it, too!

Chapter 7

“William Duncan McAvoy!”  Charlie Skinner beamed at his friend as the younger man came striding into his office.

“Morning, Charlie,” Will said, settling heavily in the chair in front of Charlie’s desk and sipping deeply from his paper coffee cup.

“I’m sorry to call you in so early.”  He offered Will an apologetic smile and half of a shrug.

“What’s going on, Chief?”

“I was under the impression that you and Nina were… amicable toward each other,” Charlie began, sliding a magazine from a pile on the desk.

“We are, definitely,” Will spoke with certainty.  “We’re at least as friendly toward each other now as we were when we were married.”  He cocked a skeptical eyebrow.  “Why?”

Charlie began to read.

“Will McAvoy:  Chivalrous Co-worker or Cheating Canine?”

“What the fuck?”  Will was out of his chair in an instant.  Charlie ignored the outburst and continued to read.  Will sat down again, sullenly.

“Will McAvoy, beleaguered anchor of ACN’s News Night, whose ratings have been slipping in the wake of his atrocious blow-up at Northwestern and divorce from TMI’s own Nina Howard, is not the knight-in-shining-armor that his PR team paints him to be.  TMI can confirm that within a week of McAvoy’s finalized divorce from Ms. Howard, he had moved his mistress of several years into the couple’s New York penthouse, which McAvoy retained in the divorce.  ‘I think the most upsetting part is that there wasn’t even a pretense of propriety.  I suppose I should be grateful he waited until the divorce was final,’ Howard said, reluctant to provide a comment.  McAvoy’s playmate?  His executive producer, Mackenzie McHale, who recently returned from a two-year banishment assignment to the Middle East.”

Before Will could formulate a response, the door to Charlie’s office swung open, and Mackenzie rushed in, waving a copy of TMI at Charlie.

“Charlie, I don’t… we’re not… I WAS NOT BANISHED.”

“Kenz.”  Will spoke her name quietly.  She whirled around.

“I didn’t realize you were here.”

“I’m so sorry, Mackenzie.  I had no idea that this was coming,” he paused, “or that she cared who lives with me.”

“I’m not your mistress!” 

_She’s never gotten bad press before._ The thought slammed into his brain like a freight train.  He stood and pulled Mackenzie into his arms.  She melted against him for a brief moment before jumping back with a frustrated groan.  _He can’t hold me like that.  For heaven’s sake, that’s probably how the story got started in the first place._ She claimed the chair that Will had vacated and dropped her head into her hands.

“Don’t we own TMI?”  Will directed the question at Charlie, who nodded his response.  “Can’t you rein them in?”

“They’re entertainment.  We’re the news division.  They don’t answer to me.”  Charlie came around his desk and took a knee in front of Mackenzie.  “Do you want me to have Public Affairs put out at statement?”

“God, what on earth could it possibly say that wouldn’t make this worse?”

Will started to craft their message aloud, “Ms. McHale is a valued and trusted member of the AWM and ACN families.  ACN wishes to recognize Ms. McHale for her award-winning journalism while on voluntary assignment in the Middle East.”  He screwed up his face as if deep in thought.  “And it’s not anyone’s fucking business who she lives with or who she’s having an affair with.  McAvoy should be so lucky.”  Mac snorted and Charlie laughed openly.  “You’re right, Kenz.  There isn’t anything that we can say that’s going ameliorate the situation.  Commenting on it makes it a three-day story instead of a one cycle nuisance.”

“I guess I should move out,” she spoke into her hands.  _Tell me that you don’t want me to go, Billy._

“Absolutely not!”  Charlie and Will spoke simultaneously.

“Why on earth not?” Mackenzie faced Charlie, though the answer she was truly interested in would come from Will.

“If for no other reason than she has no legal claim to that apartment.  You can live where you damn well please, Mac.  You can’t let her chase you out of your home.”

She turned to face Will, who nodded agreement.

“You’re on the high ground here, Mackenzie.  We haven’t been having an affair, and even if we were, it certainly isn’t newsworthy.”  _Except maybe to me._ “There is absolutely no reason to move out.”  _I like having you there._

“Do we know where to story came from?  How did Nina even know that I moved in?   Did you tell her, Will?”

“I don’t spend a lot of time on the phone with my ex-wife,” Will deadpanned.  At Mackenzie’s exasperated look, he continued.  “No.  I didn’t tell her.”  He smiled disarmingly at her.  “Did you?”  Mac huffed her response. “Who’s got the byline?”

“Arianna Templeton?” Charlie didn’t recognize the name, but recognition dawned immediately on Will.

“Jane.”

“Barrows?”  Mackenzie spat the name with mild derision.

“Yeah.  Templeton was her college roommate.  They’re constantly jamming the headsets with their mindless prattle.  Or at least they used to before Mackenzie imposed some semblance of order on the headsets between broadcasts.  The two of them got close to Nina when they were all interns at CBS..”  Will poured himself a drink from the bar at the far side of Charlie’s office.  “But how did Jane know?  She hasn’t been in New York for months.”

Mackenzie’s eyes grew wide.  “I may have told her.”

“You and Jane are pretty close, huh?” Charlie offered the quip with a smile.

“She was tittering around on the headset with one of the girls from New York dayside about Will being single and eligible again.  I may have invited them to sleepover at _our_ place.  I certainly didn’t mean to imply…”  She was cut off by Charlie laughing.

“Well, now we know where it came from.”  Charlie clapped a hand on Mac’s shoulder and squeezed gently.  “Don’t let it get you down, Mac.  It’s certainly not the first time that Will has gotten bad press.  And he’s the villain of the piece, not you.”

“I’m a co-conspirator, though.  Maybe I should call Nina… try to explain.”  Mac was earnest in her tone.

“No.  And no again.  Nina knows that I was faithful to her for the entirety of our marriage.  Whatever this is borne out of doesn’t involve you.  I’m sorry that you’re the collateral damage here, but reaching out to Nina isn’t going to fix this.”  Will’s tone was steely, and he there was a strong resolve to his posture.

“Alright, Billy,” Mac said with a sigh.  “If you’re sure.”

“I am.”  _But she’ll be hearing from me, I guarantee you._   “And really, Charlie.  You called me in for this?”  Will frowned at the older man, who shrugged and smiled.

“Mostly just to laugh at you.”

“Fantastic.”  Will took Mackenzie’s elbow and ushered her from the room.  “Mackenzie, I’m asking you, please, to not contact Nina.  I know you.  Just leave it alone.”

“Okay.”  She sounded exasperated.  “I said alright before.”  He offered her a look that spoke volumes.  “I won’t!”

“Thank you.”  He spoke with relief; he believed her affirmation.

Their hips brushed together as they walked, and at the elevator, Will dropped a kiss to her temple, intending to reassure her.  Mackenzie’s eyes fluttered closed, and she felt her heart stutter.  She leaned into Will, just a little, and his arm automatically dropped to her hip, pulling her closer and taking her weight.  Mackenzie heard him drag in a ragged breath, felt the moment getting away from them.

“Billy.”  His name was not much more than a broken whisper tripping over her lips.

“Mac.”  _Holy shit._ His voice was deep, gravelly, and he was breathing too quickly.

“We _can’t_ ,” she stepped away, putting three feet of distance between them and leaning back against a wall.  _It’s not fair to your reputation._ The emotions that crossed Will’s face ranged darkening lust, disappointment, and hurt in a span of nanoseconds.

“Yeah.  Sure.  You’re right.”  He stepped further back, looking her up and down once before turning and walking away from her.  As the stairwell door slammed shut behind him, Will wrenched his phone from his pocket and dialed.

“Well, hi honey.”  Nina’s voice dripped with sarcastic sweetness.

“I’m genuinely at a loss for words right now.”

“Well, that’s silly.  You called me, dear.”

“Knock it off,” he growled.  “What the fuck?”

“You’ve seen the news item, then?”

“It. Is. Not. News.”  Will took a deep breath, determined to get what he needed from the exchange.  “Wouldn’t it have been easier to pick up the phone and call me with whatever the problem is?”

“Easier for who?”  Nina’s voice spiked on her last word, betraying her intense level of emotion to Will.

“What is this about, Nina?”  Will attempted a conciliatory tone.

“It’s about the years that you spent lying to me about Mackenzie fucking McHale.”  Her voice shook.  “For two years, you swore up and down to me that there wasn’t anything to worry about between you and Mackenzie.  And then when she went AWOL and you shut down as a husband and a person, you spent two years telling me that you were just worried.”  He heard her sniff once.  “You’ve been in love with her since before you and I were ever together, Will.  Our marriage never stood a chance, and now’s she LIVING with you.”

“Nina, I swear to god, I never cheated on you.”

She laughed hollowly.  “I actually believe that.  Isn’t that crazy?  I believe that you’re so deep into this absurd denial that you were never with her while we were together.  Think about the optics, though.”

“Dumb it down for me.”  He sounded resigned, and she knew he didn’t have any fight left for her.  He never really had; it had been an endemic issue in their marriage.

“Do you have any idea what it looked like for me when you moved her into our home before the ink was dry on our divorce papers?”

“We aren’t together.”

“It’s called divorce.  We’re divorced.”

“No, I mean Mackenzie and me.  We aren’t together.”

“You aren’t serious.”

“Incredibly.  Having Ari write that piece was bullshit, and you owe Mackenzie an apology.”

“Excuse me?”  She paused, but Will didn’t respond.  “I think you’ve just made my point for me, Will.”

“Leave this alone, Nina.  I don’t want to see another word about either of us.  I deserve better than that from you, and Mackenzie certainly does.  She’s never been anything less than respectful of you and our relationship.  This stops here.”  He waited a beat, silently daring her to argue further with him.  “This stops here.”

He disconnected the call and sat down hard on the top step.

_Well, now what the fuck do we do?_ Thunder sounded outside, loud and close.  _Tell me about it._ The storm built, inside and out.

 

Twenty floors below, Mackenzie exited the elevator and stormed through the newsroom.  Both staffers who had been looking for her took in the expression on her face and immediately changed course.  As she disappeared into an office, allowing the door to swing closed behind her with a thump, everyone in the bullpen exchanged looks.  There was time before the first rundown meeting, and the staff silently agreed to give Mac time to cool down from whatever had gotten under her skin.

Mackenzie kicked her shoes toward the front of the desk and tucked her feet under her as she settled on the couch.  _Damn Nina, and damn that piece._   Between the look on Will’s face when she had stepped back from him and his tone of voice before he had stalked away from her, the encounter was playing on a loop in her mind.  If her body had reacted to him like that before the article from Nina, she would have allowed herself to soak in the moment, consequences be damned.  _If we’re doing this, we have to do it right.  There’s not going to be any halfway, and there’s not going to be any hiding in corners or ducking into hallways.  And what happens if it doesn’t work out?_ The issues continue to stir internally, even as she took deep breaths and attempted to calm both the thrumming in her body from the encounter and the whirling of her mind.  Mac shut her eyes, shutting out the world just for a minute.  _Of course, it would work.  It’s us.  Right?_

When Will entered his office twenty minutes later, he felt like he should have been more surprised to find Mackenzie asleep on his couch.  He smiled and shook his head, deftly avoiding her shoes in the middle of his floor.  The smile faded quickly as he drew closer and took note of the tear tracks on her face.  _What a mess._   Will sat and gently replaced the pillow under Mackenzie’s head with his thigh.  Of their own accord, his fingers tenderly stroked her hair, coaxing her toward wakefulness.

“You called me ‘Mac’ up there.  You’ve never done that before,” she spoke softly and didn’t open her eyes.  The short nap had provided both peace and a certain amount of clarity.  Will took a deep breath, and she could tell he was deciding whether or not to engage in the conversation.

“I’ve never felt that toward you either, Mackenzie.”  His words were slow and measured.

“Whadyamean?”  She asked around a yawn, opening her eyes and smiling up at him.  His eyes immediately locked with hers, and she nodded encouragingly.  “What, Billy?”

“You’re my best friend and my most trusted partner.  This show doesn’t work without you, and neither do I.”  He felt her tense at his pause, and he tried desperately to find the right words.  _And I’m in love with you and terrified that I’m going to fuck the whole thing._ He opened and closed his mouth twice, unable to form the declaration.

“There’s nothing revelatory in that.  We’re at our best together.  That doesn’t surprise either of us.  Charlie said it, Billy.  ‘While he’s at his best when you’re his EP, I would remind you that you’re at your best when he’s your anchor.’”

“Charlie said that to you?”  Will was momentarily taken off the track of their conversation.  Mac nodded at him, and her expression shifted away from the open emotion to a conservative recollection.

“He called, just before your explosion at Northwestern.  I think he’d been watching my team slowly dwindling in size and sensed the quality of my stories falling off.  And when I told him I wasn’t coming back, he told me this ridiculous story about Michael Schumacher that ended with us being at our best together.”

“Professionally,” Will verbalized the implication at the end of her statement.

“Sure.  I’m sure that’s what Charlie meant.”  She sat up and took Will’s hands in hers.  “He’s right, Billy.  We’re at our best together.  Our show is finally starting to gain a little in the ratings.  As long as we come away clean from this Nina nonsense, we’re poised to gain a position in the rankings in the next few months.  Perception is everything, especially where the tabloids are concerned.”

Will looked utterly confused by the sudden change of topic, and he couldn’t read Mackenzie’s expression at all, which was out of the ordinary for him.  The feeling was unsettling, but as he opened his mouth to speak, Mackenzie squeezed his hands and smiled.

 “Kenz?  What are you saying?”

_Oh Billy, please understand.  If that piece gains traction, your numbers… It’s not 'no'.  It’s just—not now._

“It doesn’t have to be today.  We’re alright together, home, and that’s enough for now.”

He could tell she was battling tears, and he couldn’t force all of the pieces in his mind to come together.

“But—“

“It’s okay, Billy.  Okay?”  _For now.  Just for a little while._

Mackenzie silently packed away all of the emotions swirling inside her and forced a lid onto them.  As she mentally stuffed the whole package in a closet, she sent up a silent prayer that her resolve held until the ‘Nina nonsense’ blew over… and that Will would still be looking at her like _that_ when it did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this bit. 
> 
> Things to know: I think we're done with Nina, but I can't make promises. This IS a happy ending story (I PROMISE). There will 100% be fluffy (read: smutty) content ahead.
> 
> More to come... as soon as I can make it happen for y'all!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 10/21: Single line edit update... I'm so sorry to do that, but it genuinely felt necessary.
> 
> 10/20: And so we creep closer to the moment that we're all (myself included) waiting for--- Will and Mac to get it together and get together! You'll see absolutely steps in the right direction here, and (specifically for but_it_can_be) the set up for the requested formalwear event!

Chapter 8

_Three weeks later_

“The invitations are starting pile up, sir,” Maggie stood in the doorway of Will’s office, stack of cards in hand.  Will put down his pen and looked up at her expectantly.  She was silent, and Will continued to wait.  “Crud.  I mean, the invitations are really starting to pile up, Will.”

Will smiled.  “Good.  That took five minutes less than last time.  I’m willing to call that progress.”  He pushed back and put his feet up on his desk.  “Now, what are we talking about?”

“Christmas party invitations.  There’s about twenty of them that have come in.”  She waved the stack around. 

“Christ.  This shit starts earlier and earlier every year.  Christmas isn’t for weeks.”

Maggie shrugged and continued, “A lot of these start just after Thanksgiving.  I think they’re all trying to make it onto your schedule before you break for the holidays.”  Will accepted her explanation with silence.  “These three, Mrs. Lansing had someone walk down with the message that attendance ‘is not up for debate’.”  She pulled those from the top.

“Seriously?”  Will curled his lip and lit a cigarette.

“Yes sir—Will.”  She sat the three critical cards on the edge of his desk and handed him several invitations held together with a rubber band.  “These events are at the same time as the ones that you’re required to attend.”  He thumbed through them while she continued.  “So, I’d like to make your regrets to those.”

“Alright.  Send a donation from my personal account to these two,” he said, handing her back the now separated invitations and holding out his hand for the next stack.  “What are these?”

“These are the ones that looked… interesting.”  Will’s eyebrow raised, and he waited for more explanation.  “If I were getting invitations, these are the ones that I would care about.”  Will silently thumbed through the gilded cards.

“You’re still seeing that twelve year old that Mackenzie brought back with her from Peshawar?”

“Jim?”  Will nodded his confirmation.  “Yes.  We’re seeing each other.  Is that a probl—“  Will cut her off.

“Why don’t you and Jim go to these in my place?  You’d be doing me a big favor saving me from having to go.”

“Really?”  Her voice was tinged with barely concealed excitement.  “That would be incredible!”

“Use my name and you should be able to rent a gown from any of the shops that do wardrobe for us.  Alright?”

Maggie nodded intensely.  “Will, that’s just… I… Thank you!”

Will nodded curtly, the open emotion pouring off the girl making him mildly uncomfortable.

“Now, what is Leona requiring of me this year?”  He quickly skimmed the invitations.  “Shit.”  Maggie said nothing, startled by his reaction.  “All of these are ‘and guest’.”  He tossed the invitations onto the desk.  “Alright.  I’ll deal with these.  Thanks.”

“No, but… thanks, Will.”  She retreated from the office, grateful smile still plastered to her face.

_Good.  She’s called me by my name three times without prompting.  Call that ‘disengaged’, Mackenzie._

Will lifted his desk phone and dialed Leona’s direct line.

“I got the invitations from your staffer,” he began without preamble.  “Couldn’t be bothered to bring them down yourself?”

“I could barely be bothered to send a staffer.  You’re just lucky that I didn’t summon you up here.”

“The booze are better up there, at least,” he quipped.

“Very funny.”  She paused as if considering her next words.  “Don’t bring any of those embarrassing chippies that my son typically brings to these kinds of things now that you’re divorced, okay?  I don’t have time to clean up after your disasters and his.”

Will sighed.  “I’m pretty sure that conversations like this are why I got married in the first place.”

“Well, then I’m pretty sure I understand how you ended up divorced.”  He heard ice clinking in a glass as she paused.  “Just don’t make my life any harder, Will.  Okay?”

“Sure, Leona.”

“Good.”  She broke the connection and immediately rang Charlie’s line.

“Charlie Skinner’s office.”

“Millie, patch me through to him.”  Leona waited a beat, and when she didn’t hear the click of the transfer, she spoke again.  “Please.”

“Certainly.”  Millie smiled, taking a small amount of pride in the victory.

“Leona!”  Charlie’s voice boomed deep and welcoming over the line.

“I had the invitations sent down to him.”

“You’re a good woman,” he said, affection for his longtime friend warming his voice.

“And you’re a doddering old fool.”

“I’m just a romantic.”

“Well, the ball’s in his court.  Either he will or he won’t.”

“He will.  He’s slow, but not stupid.”  Charlie smiled, enjoying the feeling of his plan clicking into place.  “Thanks Lee.”

“Okay, Charlie.”  She hung up the phone again and shook her head, wondering how she let herself get caught in the middle of another Charlie Skinner scheme.

 

That night, Will came into the apartment and stepped over Mackenzie’s shoes without even noticing that he had done it.  He was exhausted, and he wanted nothing more than to come home and have a drink with his best friend.

“Mackenzie?”  He called into the darkness of the apartment.  “Are you home?”  There wasn’t a response.  “Of fucking course not.”  He huffed to the empty space. 

Mackenzie had been notably absent from the apartment since the piece from TMI had come out.  She seemed to be gone within minutes of Will waking up each day, and he heard her come in later and later each night.  About a week ago, he had abandoned the act of waiting up for her.  When she did come home, she stayed out of her room just long enough to press a kiss to his cheek and take an apple into her bedroom.  At work, everything seemed fine, and they still found time for lunch together every day.  That was where their interaction had stopped, though.  Will didn’t understand, and he missed her.  When he tried to pin her down on her whereabouts, Mackenzie was evasive, changing the subject with impressive speed and tact.  Will’s frustration was growing, and his patience with the situation was diminishing rapidly.

_We’ve got to TALK to each other.  This is getting absurd._

Will poured himself a tall scotch and flipped on the basketball game.  He settled on the couch and flashed back to the weeks immediately following Mackenzie moving in; she would start curled up on the other end of the couch but find herself stretched out on his chest by halftime.  It was familiar and comfortable, and the arrangement had suited him.  He thought it had suited her, as well.  A frown creased his forehead as he tried to put Mackenzie and the whole situation out of his mind.

The buzzer marking the end of the first quarter sounded just as the elevator dinged.  Will turned to see Mackenzie come in, looking every bit as exhausted as he felt.

“Hey,” he said gently.

“Hey,” she responded, kicking off her shoes and making a mental note to move some of the growing pile into her room.  _They’re just too expensive to leave in heaps by the door._

“You’re home early.”  He subconsciously shifted into the corner of the couch.

“Sloan threatened to start charging me rent if I didn’t find my way home.”  She poured a drink that rivaled Will’s in size, and he fought to keep his expression impassive.  When she took what Will could only describe as a belt of the liquid, he felt his eyebrows climb of their own accord.

“You’ve been at Sloan’s all this time.”  He didn’t phrase it as a question, not wanting to know if he was wrong.

“Yeah.”  She took up a spot at the far edge of the couch.

“Oh.”  He nodded once and turned his attention back to the game, noting with mild amusement that Mackenzie was staring intently at the screen.  “Do you know what sport this is?”

“Badminton.”  She spoke with absolute certainty, and he laughed heartily.

“Close.  Basketball.”  He uncrossed his arms and stretched one along the back of the couch.

“That’s what I said.”  She smiled, reveling in the familiar comfort of their banter.  After a few minutes of desperately trying to understand the game in front of her, Mackenzie slid over, laying her head on Will’s chest and immediately finding the spot that she had claimed as her own weeks ago.  Within moments, his fingers had tangled in her hair, and she felt him relax.

“Everything okay with Sloan?”

“Hmm?”

“Is everything okay with Sloan?”

“Sure.  Why?”

“You’ve been spending a lot of time there… not here… I don’t know.”

Mackenzie pushed back off of Will’s chest and sat up.

“Billy…” she began, but trailed off.  After another fortifying sip of her drink, she continued, “It’s easier to be there than to be here.”

“Why?” he sounded incredulous and hurt.

“Because, you look at me like _that_ , and I just want—it doesn’t matter what I want.”  He shook his head, clearly not understanding her dilemma.  “And it isn’t the right time.  With the pressure that TMI is putting on your image and Nina’s latest runs through the morning shows, Billy… If I fall into your arms, I’m never going to want to leave them.  We’re already so precariously perched on the edge of this…”  Cutting herself off, she carded her hands through her hair and changed tracks.  “I miss you.  Do you know that?  It’s ridiculous.  We live together, and I’m so busy trying not to fall for you that I don’t see you anymore.”  Will opened his mouth to speak, but Mackenzie hurried on.  “And you’re my best friend, so I ask you, with whom am I supposed to talk about my current predicament?  Sloan is utterly useless.  Next to no human knowledge.”  Her words ended abruptly, and she threw up her hands.  “I’ve not said any of this well.”

“I’m not going to say that I understood everything that you just said, but I will say this,” he muted the television.  “It might, just maybe, be possible that you’re overthinking whatever it is that you’re thinking.”  His words, obviously an attempt to lighten the tone of the conversation, drew a sound from Mackenzie that Will could only could only describe as distraught; he could see her resolve crumbling and tears building in the wake of her outburst and weeks of holding all of her emotions behind a self-imposed wall.  _Fuck.  You’re going to blow it, McAvoy._ “Aw Mac, hon, don’t cry.”  Instinctively, he pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms tight around her and holding her as close as possible.  “I understand what you’re saying.  I think you're far more concerned with my image than either of us should be.  Let me be very clear that I miss you, too.  Living together doesn’t work if we don’t see each other.”  _Be honest with her.  Just say it._   “While you’ve been at Sloan’s trying not to, how did you put it?  How not to fall for me?  You’ve been at Sloan’s, and I’ve been here, already fallen.”  _You sound like an imbecile.  Try again._

Before he could formulate a more eloquent statement, Mackenzie’s lips were on his.  For a heartbeat, Will was frozen with shock.  And then, his arms tightened around her, and his lips parted slightly, melding with Mac’s.  She exhaled against him, allowing the kiss to enthrall her senses completely.  _Screw timing.  I want this.  I want him._   When Mackenzie’s bottom lip was suddenly caught gently between Will’s teeth, she wasn’t able to suppress the groan of desire that bubbled up from the deepest parts of her.  Her tongue darted forward to trace his lips, and she committed the taste of him to memory.  Their passion for each other threatened to bubble over, but neither seemed to want to risk breaking the spell and deepening the kiss.

“Mac,” Will breathed her name into her hair, speaking first as she buried her face in his shoulder.  “Mackenzie,” he spoke again, when her face remained hidden.  His tone was raw and intense, and Mackenzie couldn’t help but meet his gaze.  “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“That I don’t ever want you to stop kissing me.”  The words escaped her lips before she could stop them, and her eyes grew wide.  Will chuckled gruffly.

“Well, that’s good because I don’t plan to stop.  He kissed the bridge of her nose and then lightly her lips again.”

“We haven’t settled anything,” she murmured.

“I don’t think we can work it out in one night.”  He kissed her again, marveling at how her lips seemed made for his.  “Tell me what you need, hon.”

She shrugged, working to form cohesive sentences.  His kiss was at once familiar and brand new to her; her heart seemed to know the rhythm of his.

“I think we’ve crossed a point of no return tonight.”  _Because I suddenly can’t imagine anyone else’s lips on mine, anyone else’s hands exploring me._

“I think you’re probably right.”  _I’m never going back to not kissing you, Mac._

“I don’t have any answers.”

“How about this?”  He disentangled himself from her and stood up.  “Mackenzie, would you do me the honor of accompanying me to a Leona-mandated Christmas party?  Let me take you on a real date?”  She looked unsure, and so he continued.  “It’s not an answer to your concerns, but it buys you some time to think about it more… and to talk about it, with me, the best friend and the man who just wants to kiss you senseless for hours on end.”

“It doesn’t solve anything.”  He nodded in agreement, but continued to look hopeful.  “I’ll need a dress.”

Will’s face split into a relieved and excited grin.  He stooped down and dusted several feather-light kisses across her lips.  She grinned too, and fisted her hands in his shirt, anchoring his mouth to hers.  After a moment, she pulled back and looked into Will’s eyes.  She didn't haven't words, but she could tell that he did.

“This is so much better than watching badminton.”  Mackenzie giggled at his comment, and her smile crinkled her eyes.   _There it is, that smile that I've missed for that last few weeks._

“Agreed.”  She stood up, tugging Will onto his feet with her.  “Now walk me to my door, and kiss me goodnight.”  She stifled a yawn.  “I haven’t slept well for weeks, and I suddenly could sleep for days.”

“That’s what communication will do for you, Mackenzie.”  He kissed her goodnight, gently and with extreme tenderness.  “I learned that from Habib.”

“The kissing?” she said, clearly mocking him in her tone.

“You’re impossible.”  _And I love you._ He gently nudged her toward her door. “Go to sleep, Mac.  I’ll be here when you wake up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forewarning: smut ahead! Within the next two or three chapters, it's going to happen. Our favorite pairing is going to finally get there, together. (thanks be... I was running out of patience with myself)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was another that came in starts and stops in the terminal of airport after airport. I always love hearing what you think... especially when I'm less than 100% comfortable with the work that I'm submitting for y'all's approval.
> 
> Thanks for sticking around! You guys are exceptional.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!! Rating change ahead.
> 
> Okay, here it is, 3800+ words of smut... dedicated to SueG5123 (in the least creepy way possible) because her feedback inspired me to stay up way too late putting this together so that I could get it edited in the cold light of day and posted ASAP.
> 
> Hope you guys dig it! Writing a first-time scene between Will and Mac was oddly more difficult than I had imagined!!!

Chapter 9

The newscast had lacked pep, and Will had been summoned upstairs post-broadcast, the unfortunate byproduct of the Lansings watching the show, one of their rare viewings.

“You go on home,” he had said, gently nudging Mac in the direction of the elevators.  “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”  _We’ll make out on the couch and make no progress toward anything, again._

“Okay.  Let me catch up with the staff, and I’ll see you there.”

Will rode the elevator to Charlie’s office, and together they headed for Reese’s office.  The feedback was overly critical and specific to tonight’s broadcast.  Within the first minute, Will knew that nothing constructive was going to be offered.  He raised his eyebrows at Charlie, who responded with an almost imperceptible shake of his head.  Will gave his best ‘I’m listening and give a shit’ face and sat quietly.  Finally, Reese dismissed them, and Charlie thanked them for their feedback.

“That was a colossal waste of time.”  Will nodded his agreement and got into the elevator with Charlie.  “Want a drink?”

“No thanks, Chief.  I need to get home.”

“Sure.”  Charlie smiled; his eyes danced.  “I wouldn’t share the feedback from the Lansings with Mac.  It was just a bad night.  We don’t need to internalize it.”

“Yeah,” Will smiled and shrugged, holding the elevator open for Charlie to exit.  “Good night.  Kiss Nancy for me.”

 

An hour and a half later, Will and Mackenzie were tangled together on the couch, embroiled in their routine of the last few weeks.  Tonight, though, Will’s self-control was slipping, and he tried to pull back.

“Mac,” Will growled against her parted lips.  “We’ve got to stop, or I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”  He spoke around the peppering of kisses that she was continuing to press to his face.  “Honey,” he tried again, “please.”  _Goddammit, you’re the one who felt so strongly about waiting until we’ve actually addressed what we’re doing._

“Billy,” she all but purred, “I’ve changed my mind.”

“Why?”  He momentarily surrendered and captured her earlobe between his teeth, biting softly.

“I want you,” she groaned against his neck.

“That’s not a good enough reason, Mac, and you know it.”  He lifted her off of his lap and stood, giving them physical space.  “We said that _this_ ,” he gestured to the space between them, “couldn’t happen until you were sure.”  _And as much as I like making out like teenagers on the couch every night, my self-control only stretches so far._

“I’m sure about you, Billy.  I’m sure about us.  It’s the rest of the world I’m unsure of.”

Will’s carefully schooled expression didn’t waver.  He had heard this from her night in and night out for weeks.

“That means that you’ve got doubts, Mackenzie.  However you want to phrase it, it’s still uncertainty, and that’s where we drew the line.”

“How long have you been sitting on that argument?” Mackenzie asked through a frown.

“Since the first time that you said you didn’t have doubts about me, only doubts about the rest of the world.”  _But, I’ve been trying to let you figure out whatever you’re working through._   “Mackenzie, if I let myself touch you, if I’m inside you,” he held her gaze firmly with his, “honey, I’m never going to not want to be with you like that, and as long as you’ve got doubts, you still might walk away.  I--,” his voice broke, the weight of the emotion it carried straining it beyond its capacity.  “I don’t think I could survive that.”

“But the timing…”  Those were the only words that she got out before Will cut her off.

“Fuck the timing!” He raised both hands toward the ceiling in a gesture that plainly said, ‘there, I said it.’  “Are those your only reservations, Mac?  Truly?”   She nodded, taken aback by his outburst.  When he continued, his tone was gentler.  “Then fuck the timing, Mac.  If we wait until there’s a good time to do this, we’ll be waiting forever.  I’m in love with you.  There’s no way out of that.  That’s just a physical law of the universe.  You own me.  If you want this, if you want us, then you should say yes.”

“You love me?”  She sounded incredulous.

“Of course I love you, Mackenzie!”  _Could you really not have known?_   “I think I’ve always loved you.”  His voice dropped, and she wasn’t completely sure that she had heard him correctly.

“Always?”

He nodded and spoke, “I didn’t know it, and I certainly didn’t plan it.”  _I fucking hate that Nina was right, though._   Will had never felt more exposed or vulnerable than he did in that moment.  “I’m too old to be waiting for timing, and I’m too old to be governed by fear of dumb people.  Being with you, Mac, is what I want, but you have to want it, too.”

She hesitated only a moment before flying off the couch and flinging herself into his arms.  Her weight landed solidly against him, and she was immediately enveloped by him.

“I love you, Billy.”  His arms tightened around her, and he pressed kisses to the top her head, the only part of her body accessible to him because of the closeness of their embrace.  “Are you sure this isn’t going to blow up in our faces?”

“I’m not sure about anything, but I’m certainly willing to risk it with you.”  He tilted her chin up and captured her lips with his.  “You’re saying yes?”

“Yes,” she confirmed.

“No reservations or doubts?”

“None.”

“Thank god.”

He cradled her face in his hands and stared hard into her eyes, searching for some confirmation of her words.  What he read there was real, fierce, and it was for him.

“I really love you,” he said again, the weight of holding the words back for so long finally lifting.  The intensity of his feelings for her frightened him a little.

“I love you, too, Billy.”  She laughed as she spoke, the joy she was feeling finding a release in that moment.

_Jesus.  This is a forever thing that I’m getting into here._   Will was distracted from his thoughts by Mackenzie’s mouth seeking his.  He put everything from his mind and gave himself over to the moment.  His tongue swept across her lips, and they parted for him.  His hands dropped to the curve of her hip, urging her closer.  A needy sound echoed from Mac’s throat into Will’s as her leg hooked around him.  She felt him, already hard, pressing against her.

Years of unacknowledged and unfulfilled fantasies flooded Mackenzie’s mind, and she tightened her arms around his shoulders and neck.  Will’s hand dropped from her hip, lower, coming up on the bottom of her rounded backside, and in that moment, he knew that there was no going back.  He had been wanting Mackenzie forever, he realized, and every other woman had been a poor filler for what he needed.

“Mackenzie?” he nuzzled the side of her face with his nose.

“Mmm,” she responded, not stilling even for a moment her hands, which were learning the feel of his back and shoulders.

“I’m afraid that this is going to get really trite really quickly.”

She anchored her hands in his hair and pulled his face to hers.  When her lips were only a hairsbreadth from his, she spoke.

“Isn’t it wonderful?”  His nose wrinkled, and she knew he wasn’t grasping her meaning.  “That we’re feeling the clichéd things and that we’re willing to say them out loud.  Isn’t it wonderful?”  The smile that he gave her was so wide that she felt his scalp shift under her fingers.

“That’s exactly what I mean.  I feel like I’m going to tell you that I’ve never wanted anyone in the ways that I’m wanting you and that we’re both going to roll our eyes at the banality of the statement.” 

“It’s quite possible,” Mackenzie said through a laugh at his words, “that you’re the one who’s overthinking it now.”  She dropped her leg from his hip and slowly unbuttoned two buttons on her blouse.  “Maybe you’re putting too much pressure on it.”  Her tone was light, and she took an immense amount of pleasure in watching his mouth fall open.  “Let’s just,” she said, freeing two more buttons, “let it happen.” 

Will nodded, eyes glued to Mac’s hands and the buttons she continued to finger.

“Stop,” he croaked after another moment.  Mac’s brow crinkled in obvious consternation.  “I want to… Let me undress you.”  His tone carried a note of question.  Her answer came as she dropped her hands to her side and gave Will a shy smile.  For all of the intimacy that they shared, this was different, and they both felt a little bit out of their depth.  Will took a step toward her, closing the gap between them.  He tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and saw a flush of desire creep across her cheeks.  Each touch suddenly carried promise and built anticipation unlike anything either had experienced before this moment.  Reaching out, he traced his middle finger across her bottom lip.  Mac’s eyes fluttered closed, and her lips parted just enough to allow her to truly savor the feeling of being caressed by him.  Back and forth, twice across her lips.  The sensation enraptured them both, and they stood like that for a moment.  Mac opened her eyes to see Will staring intently at her mouth.

“What?” she whispered, abruptly feeling very exposed.

“I’m just trying to record this moment or maybe the whole night, I don’t know.”

She pressed a kiss to the finger still lingering near her mouth.

“This is a solid promise,” she smiled knowingly at the man she loved.  “Anytime you start to get fuzzy on the details, I’ll remind you.  Alright?  We’ll call it a reenactment.”

He chuckled and tugged her body closer using the half-open shirt as leverage.

“That’s a pretty good idea.”

He deftly unfastened the last two buttons of her blouse, pulling the whole garment from where it had been tucked into her skirt.  As her bra came into view, his mouth found hers for a brief kiss before traveling to her neck.  Will filed away the noise she made when his mouth found a particular spot between her neck and her collarbone, vowing to explore it further in the future.

Taking a step around her, Will swept her hair off the back of her neck and pulled her blouse down her shoulders.  As it fell to the floor, Mac’s eyes shut again, and all thought outside of the feel of his mouth on her faded away.

“Mac?” Will murmured thoroughly kissing her neck and shoulders.

“Okay, Billy?”

“I’m going to touch you, alright?”  He sounded for all the world like a college freshman, all nerves and excitement.

“Billy?”  She reached back and gently brushed the back of her hand across the hard bulge at the front of his trousers, noting the small groan that escaped him.  “If you don’t touch me, I’m going to die of absolute frustration.”

Will was already wound impossibly tight.  _I’m never going to survive this._   His mouth resumed its ministrations at the junctions of the back of her neck and shoulder, and his hands tentatively traced from her hips over the plane of her stomach, finally cupping her breasts.  Mac couldn’t hold back the moan that came involuntarily at the feel of his hands on her.  She arched her back forward, increasing the pressure of his touch.  At that, all of Will’s nervousness and cautiousness evaporated; the dam of passion that had been growing between them for longer than either would admit broke open.

Mac spun in his arms and crashed her lips against his with a hunger that stunned Will.  _She really does want this… me._ He responded to the kiss with equal ferocity and pulled her onto her toes to connect her with his erection.

“Yes,” he heard her sigh as she lifted one leg and then the other, wrapping herself around Will’s waist.  He took one step, plaintively.  _If your old ass knee gives out, McAvoy, that’s going to blow the whole evening._ Finding that the petite frame of Mackenzie wasn’t a strain on his knee, he took several more steps, backing Mac into a wall.  He thrust forward once, more the secure her between his body and the wall that anything else, but the contact drew groans from them both.

“God, Mac,” he growled, anchoring her should to the wall as his mouth slowly began to tease her nipple through the lace of her bra.  Mac whimpered helplessly, and Will had to fight for control.  He was off balance; his body had never reacted to anyone’s the way that it was reacting to Mackenzie.

“Take me to bed, Billy.  Please?”  He couldn’t tell if the ‘please’ was in relation to the bedroom or is she was imploring him to continue with his mouth.  “Don’t stop!” she cried, arching harder into his mouth.  He dragged down the cups of her bra and immediately sucked a nipple into his mouth, biting down gently and then soothing with laps of his tongue.  Still pinned against the wall, she ground her hips against him.  “Please Billy,” she pleaded, desperation coloring her words.  He thrust his hips forward again, contemplating the ways to remove her skirt and his pants without letting her down from her current position.  He turned his mouth to her other breast as his hips jutted forward, and he felt Mackenzie stiffen, heard her surprised shout, and then go completely limp in his arms.

_Holy shit._

“Oh my god, Billy,” she exhaled shakily, and Will was ridiculously proud of himself.

“Okay, Mac?”  Biting her lip, she nodded, sagging forward off the wall and letting him take her full weight again.  Her legs unwound from his waist, and she kept her face buried against him.  “Hey!”  He grabbed her arms.  “What’s the matter, honey?”  Concern for her flooded his senses.

“You didn’t even—touch me… not really.”  She spoke to his chest. 

_She’s embarrassed?_ “I think that bodes well for the rest of the night.  Don’t you?”  He tipped her chin up and kissed her with extreme tenderness.  “Mac, you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in real life.  You’re incredibly sexy.  And that…” he tossed a nod toward the wall that they had just vacated, “was fucking amazing.”  He smiled at her.  “Okay?”

She returned his smile, genuinely, and reached for his hand.

“Your place or mine?”

“Yours is closer,” he said, desire for her darkening his voice.

Mackenzie squeezed his hand and nudged her bedroom door open with her hip.  One lamp cast dim shadows across the bed, and the room smelled like _her_.  Will felt his heart swell in his chest; his breath caught in his throat as she smiled at him.    

“Kiss me, Will.”  She said, facing him.  And so, his lips found hers again; he was grateful for her direction.  She was pulling on his sweater, and he helped her pull it over his head.  She frowned at the t-shirt he was wearing underneath.  “How many layers of clothes are you wearing?”  She tugged up the shirt and watched with unadulterated want as it was cast aside.  Her fingernails raked up from his belt up through the hair on his chest, and he growled at the sensation.

Her fingers fumbled for a moment with his belt before finding success and unfastening both his belt and his pants in a fluid motion.  She pushed his pants over his hips and tugged them away from his feet, and when he was free of them, she came to her knees in front of him.  She traced the shape of him through his boxers, taking in the small hiss he made when her hand grazed him.  Her thumbs caught the elastic of his waistband, and she divested him of his last article of clothing.  She stared unabashedly as his erection was freed from the constraints of his boxers and immediately reached out to touch him.  He groaned at her touch, and she read the heady desire in his eyes.  When her tongue darted forward to trail the clear droplet at his head down his shaft and back up again, she felt him shudder.  And then her mouth was on him, taking him in, creating sensations with her mouth that were indescribable.

“Mac,” he ground out after a minute or so.  Her eyes caught his, and he continued, “come up here.”  She frowned, almost imperceptibly, but stood, quickly and gracefully.  “Hon, if you keep that up, it’s going to be a short night.”  He brought his lips down to her neck, searching the spot that had elicited the very vocal response earlier.  He found it quickly and focused on it as his hands deftly unzipped her skirt.  It fell to the floor around her ankles, and he guided her steps backward until she came up against the bed.

His tongue probed her lips, begging them to part for him and then sweeping inside her mouth and connecting with hers; she felt the dampness between her legs grow even more pronounced.  His hips pressed against her, Mac’s black satin underwear the only barrier between them.  She moaned softly, passion rising to a fever pitch again.  Will laid her back gently on the bed, covering her body with his.  One of his legs found its way between hers, and she ground on his leg, his name echoing over and over from her lips.

Will reached under her and unclasped her bra, pulling it off and tossing it to the side.  His hands touched her everywhere, burning a trail across her body.  Mac’s neck and collarbone, exposed to him in new ways, were quickly covered by his mouth, and his hands found her breasts.  His mouth followed, and he teased one nipple with his tongue, coaxing it until it grew firm beneath his touch.  His hand massaged her other breast, drawing forth a deep moan from the back of her throat. 

While Mac’s hands gripped Will’s hair, keeping his mouth exactly where it was, Will slid the underwear off of her.  He cupped her, gently, and found her slick with desire for him.  The discovery drew a primal growl from the back of his throat.

“God, Mac.”

She tried to respond, but couldn’t find words, unsure if she was going to fall apart or fly away on the sensations he was creating for her.  In a show of bravado, Mac reversed their positions, hips unexpectedly astride Will’s.  She lowered herself just enough to allow her body to graze his hardness.  He made an unintelligible sound.

“Billy, I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life,” she said, guiding him to her entrance and sliding back and forth over him, coating him in her wetness.

“Fuck,” Will said, acutely aware of his lack of eloquence in this moment, “I love you, Mackenzie.”

As he spoke, she slid down on him, stretching to take him fully inside her.  Guttural, harsh moans echoed through the room, torn from both of them.  Mackenzie stilled for a moment, adjusting to the sensation of him bumping as deeply as she could take him.  She rolled her hips forward and then back, keenly aware of the aching fullness inside her.  Mac gasped and clutched Will’s shoulders as he reached forward and made contact with the overly sensitized bud where their bodies were joined.  He felt the tension immediately spiral in her and coaxed her even higher.

“Come for me, Mackenzie.  Fly for me.”

Moments later, Mackenzie shattered, momentarily losing all feeling except deep in her core, as Will drove her over the edge.  She cried his name, and slumped forward, fully on top of him, in euphoric exhaustion.  Without breaking their connection, Will rolled Mackenzie onto her back and locked her hips into his.

He began to move inside her, his cadence gentle as he built her up again.  Every thrust was met with delicious sounds from Mackenzie, and for a brief moment, Will allowed himself to entertain the possibility of having her in his bed every night for as long as they both should live.  Her hands gripped his backside, urging him deeper, and he was catapulted back into the present.  Everything in him screamed toward release, and he fought to hold back.

Mackenzie felt her climax building again, impossibly, and she lifted her hips to meet his thrusts, needing him to understand the heights to which he was taking her.

“Billy,” she panted, a mix of passion and apprehension in her voice.  “I—again,” she couldn’t formulate the words, and he was too enthralled in her to sort out any meaning other than ensuring that they both crashed over the edge together.

He thrust deep into her, and held there, reveling in the sensation of her growing tighter and tighter around him.

“Mac,” he groaned, pouring every ounce of emotion he possessed into her name, as he withdrew from her just enough to be able to thrust back again.  And suddenly, she was coming around him, his name spilling from her lips.  With a fierce groan, he followed her over the edge, thrusting hard through her climax and filling her with himself.  He collapsed mostly on top of her, still buried deep inside his best friend cum lover.

For a long time, they lay tangled in each other, letting their heartbeats return to a normal pace, occasional aftershocks making them both shiver.  When Will finally withdrew from her, a small grimaced creased her brow.

“Mackenzie?” he kissed her brow, hoping to smooth the lines of discomfort he found there.

“Sorry,” she smiled sheepishly at him.  “I’m a little bit out of practice.”  _And going to be wildly uncomfortable in the morning._

“Shit.  Mac, I’m sorry.”

“What?” she laughed at him.  “Billy, that was… a lot of things really, but that was exceptional.  You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

“Can I stay here tonight?”

“I doubt either of us could go very far.”  Sleep was beginning to creep into her tone, and she smiled at him.  “Please don’t leave.”  As if to punctuate her point, she shifted into the crook of his arm with her head on his chest and shut her eyes.

Warmth spread through him as the pieces of his life seemed to click into place.

“Don’t worry, Mackenzie.  I’ll be right here.”  He closed his eyes and allowed the exhaustion of a perfect night to claim him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I’ve taken now to stealing lines of dialogue directly from Sorkin’s own mouth. Changing the context is fun, and I sometimes just can’t help using words that I know that would both say (because they’ve already said them). So, please indulge me as I've indulged myself. 
> 
> Did you like it?? Did it meet expectations?
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks so much for reading!!!! Genuinely, I appreciate every single human who takes the time to read this!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning again... Smut ahead.
> 
> I don't know if I should apologize or just let this ride. Here's another 3000+ words of smut. It doesn't advance the plot very far, but I couldn't help myself. I guess I had Will and Mac on the brain, and I couldn't get past this scene.

Chapter 10

Will came awake gradually, aware that he was not in his own bed.  It took only a moment for memories of the night before to flood back—the sound of Mackenzie’s voice breathing his name as she came apart under this touch, her breath, slow and even, on his chest as she had fallen asleep on him.  What startled him was the realization that her body was no longer pressed against his.  He stretched his arm across her bed, searching for her.  A frown creased his forehead as he felt only cool mattress.  She hadn’t been in the bed for some time.   _How long did I sleep_ _?_   He glanced at his watch, still in place on his wrist from last night.  7:45.  The frown deepened.  He sat up, scanning the room for her.  Mackenzie wasn’t in sight, but the bedroom door was open.  Will got out of bed and pulled his boxers from the floor and over his hips.  He padded from the room, glancing toward his door and deciding that it was unlikely she was there, and headed toward the living room. 

The balcony door was open.  _Gotcha._   Pulling the blanket from the back of the sofa, Will stepped outside.  She was sitting on the large chaise on which he had spent many nights while Mackenzie had been overseas.  _A lot of scotch, and a lot of pot._   Her legs were curled under her, and she was staring blankly out at the New York City skyline.  He took a step toward her, trying not to startle.

“Hey,” she said, softly, not turning her head.

“Good morning,” he said, crossing the balcony.

He sat beside her, put his feet up, and tucked the blanket around their laps.  Her head listed against him, and he dropped his arm onto her shoulder.  “You okay?”

“Sure,” she said, continuing to stare into the space in front of her.

“Does this work if we don’t talk to each other?”

“I’m just thinking about… us… about everything.”

“Want to talk about it?”  His tone was gentle.  She didn’t hear any judgement or anger in his voice, and so, she began to talk to him.

“It’s a lot, Billy.  You know?”  His arm tightened around her.  “I’ve never been in love like this before, never been so connected to someone.  And then, last night was—“ she trailed off, hesitant.

 “Last night was what, Mac?”  There was trepidation in his voice.  _Last night was the best night of my life._

“Is it… is it usually like that for you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Just, well, that good.”  Her voice got gravelly as she allowed memories of the previous evening to wash over her.  “I mean, we just _fit_.  It wasn’t awkward, and we came together—“  Her words were tumbling out now, but she stopped when she felt him laughing beside her.

“Mackenzie,” he said, clearly relieved, “last night was amazing.  I don’t ever think that I’ve felt so physically satisfied in my life.”

“It’s just a lot,” she repeated.  “I don’t sleep with people.  I can’t.  That morning when Jim was here and I was in your bed, I thought that was a fluke for me.  I chalked it up to the tequila.  But, last night, I was asleep in your arms, no questions.  I slept beautifully, and when I woke up, you were still there.

“Of course I was!”  He sounded mildly indignant.

“Alright, but that hasn’t always been my experience,” she said quietly.

“I love you, Mackenzie.”  He spoke again, firmer.  “I’m in love with you.  I’m not going anywhere.  If you want to sleep in separate rooms, we can talk about that.”  He shifted a little, bringing their hips into alignment and creating a physical connection that stretched from shoulder to knee.  “Falling asleep with you in my arms was the perfect end to last night, but we can work up to that, if you're uncomfortable.”

“I think you’re missing my point.  I don’t want to sleep anyplace but on your chest ever again.  I’m overwhelmed, Will.  I love you, and you love me, which is mind-blowing, in and of itself.  I can _sleep_ with you, and the sex… we should probably try it again, just be sure that it wasn’t first-timer’s luck.  But this all feels _right_ , and that’s why I’m overwhelmed.”

“So you’re sitting out here in the cold, overwhelmed by the fact that this is GOOD?”

She exhaled hard.  “Billy!”

“I’m just trying to understand, honey.”

“My life with Brian was never what I would call ‘happy’.  Most days, I couldn’t understand why he would want to marry me.  Neither of us ever seemed content.  It was never comfortable, and it was certainly never like last night.”  _Nothing’s ever been like last night._   She felt a blush rise to her cheeks, and she was grateful that she wasn’t facing him.

“You couldn’t sleep with Bri— with anyone else?” he asked with genuine curiosity.

“Not since my first overseas assignment in the 90’s,” she said, tone carrying a wealth of information. 

She and Will had never talked about her first assignment, and Mackenzie had worked hard to put the whole ordeal behind her.  The proclivity for sleeping alone was really her only lingering effect.

“But you can sleep with me?”

“Looks that way.”

“Good.”  He nodded once.  “I like that thought of you being in my bed every morning… every night, too.”  He kissed her cheek.  “And you’re right.”

“I usually am.  What am I right about today?  Just out of curiosity.”

“We should definitely do it again, just to make sure that it wasn’t a fluke.”  Mac smiled at his words, much of the emotion that had been overwhelming her having evaporated after sharing with Will.  “I’m pretty sure that it wasn’t though,” he continued.  “That was an incredible night, and chemistry like that doesn’t just blow away after one try.”  His hand on her shoulder pushed the strap of her tank top down her arm traced the curve of her breast through the shirt.  “We’ll check, just to be sure.”

He kissed her neck lightly and then bit down gently on the top of her shoulder.

“Do you think we ought to right now?” she asked, leaning into the contact.

Will felt himself twitch in his boxers.

“Probably the only way to assuage your fears about how unique last night’s experience will be,” he said, kissing her next and collarbone between each word.

“Probably,” she sighed, again feeling desire rising in her.

She felt herself scooped into his lap, and she followed him down as he reclined on the chaise.  She was half on top, half beside him, and their bodies melted together.  He caught her bottom lip between his teeth, drawing a whimper from her.  Will knew that he was going to try to drive her over the edge more times than either of them could imagine before they were finished that morning.  If she wanted to be sure that the night before wasn’t a one-off, he was going to leave her completely satiated and spent.  _Gauntlet thrown._

Not wasting any time, Will worked his leg between Mackenzie’s and shifted until his thigh connected with her core.  Will groaned as her felt her, already damp through the thin cotton of her underwear.

“God, Mac.”

The knowledge that she wanted him so intensely turned him on in ways that he couldn’t quantify.  He felt her grind down against his leg.  Her nerve endings were thrumming as her hips rolled, increasing the pressure of his thigh between her legs.  The freedom that she felt with Will was new for her, and so she was—at least for the last several weeks—seemingly always ready for him.  When she had awoken early that morning, she had been concerned that, having been utterly exhausted in Will’s arms, she wouldn’t be as ready or as needy.  The instant rush of warm wetness she felt when Will had touched her through her shirt was, to her mind, a good sign.  She ground down on his leg again and moaned at the sensation.  Will bent his knee, bringing his leg higher and not giving Mackenzie a moment of respite.  Her breathing was growing ragged, and her rhythm on this thigh grew more fevered.  Will tugged her tank top down and took her breast in his mouth, sucking her nipple and coaxing it to a firm peak.

“Billy,” she breathed out between small gasps, “I don’t think it was a fluke.”

She tumbled into a climax that had come up fast and hard.  Will watched in amazement as her face betrayed her passion.  He felt himself grow impossibly harder, felt a tightening in his sac, and bit the inside of his cheek, hard.  _Don’t even think about it.  Not yet._   He rolled her off of him and put her on her back, covering her just long enough to kiss her deeply before sliding down her body.  He pulled her panties down and tossed them to the side.  Lifting her hips to change their angle, he cupped her backside with both hands.  He dropped a line of kisses up her thigh and trailed his tongue across her hipbone, taking satisfaction in the moan that she gave and the small wiggle of her hips, silently asking for more.

He lowered his face to her, taking in the scent of her, absolute desire for her completely overtaking his senses.  With a groan that matched hers and betrayed the level of need that he was feeling for her, his tongue darted forward, skimming her wetness.  She jerked at the touch, gasping—almost startled.

“Billy?”  She sounded unsure.  His tongue swiped again, this time parting her folds and spreading wetness up to the taut pink bundle of nerves that was ultra-sensitive in that moment.

“Still okay, honey?” he asked, not raising his head.  When she didn’t reply, he lifted his eyes and sought hers.  “Mackenzie?”

“You don’t have to…” she said, looking from her hips to his face and then looking away.

Will knew this face.  He had seen it the first time he had made her breakfast and again the first time she had caught him folding her laundry that she had forgotten in the dryer.  _That Brenner is a real fucking shithead._

“Do you want me to stop?” he asked with extreme tenderness.  She hesitated for only a second before shaking her head.  “Good.” 

The look that she gave him was full of love and awe.  In that moment, he would have walked through fire for her.  He attempted, instead, to put what he was feeling into making love to her with his mouth.

He draped her leg over his shoulder, opening her more fully to him.  His tongue thrust into her, over and over, and he could feel her winding tighter.  He pressed his face forward, connecting the bridge of his nose with the one spot she need needed to come undone for him.  His name came off her lips in a harsh shout as she shuddered around his tongue, climax ripping through her.  Will bit back a smile.  Another rush of her desire for him coated his tongue; he slid his tongue up, connected with the bud at the junction of her thighs.  He slid a finger deep inside her, withdrawing and adding a second digit.  She was still wound tight, even with the climax that he had just drawn from her.  _Betcha we can do it again._   Her walls clenched around his fingers, and Will fought for his own control.  He pumped into her, in and out, slowly at first but building to meet the motion of her hips as the pressure and pleasure he was building in her grew.

“Mackenzie,” he withdrew his tongue from its current project to speak, and she made a frustrated noise.  “Don’t change your mind, okay?”

“Not.  The.  Time.”  She spoke in cadence with his thrusting fingers.  “But, I won’t,” she gasped out as she came again.  His fingers and tongue worked her through her climax and the aftershocks.

He could tell from the way that her legs were quaking that she wasn’t used to finding a climax that hard or in that rapid of a succession.  Once she had stopped quivering, Will moved back up her body and pulled her into a kiss.  She tasted herself on his lips; she couldn't pinpoint why she found it so erotic but not dedicating much energy to the question.  Her tongue thrust forward, into Will’s mouth.  Her fingers wound into his hair anchoring his mouth to hers.

They were side by side, and she could feel his hard length pressing into her thigh.  She clenched involuntarily at the thought of him invading her body with his again.  She draped her leg over his hip, bringing their bodies into alignment.  She released his hair and reached to tug his boxers down.  Without breaking the contact of their lips, she was able only to push them to his mid-thigh.  It was enough to free his erection, and so she abandoned trying to fully remove the boxers.  One hand reached to encircle him.  He moaned into her mouth, and she felt incredibly powerful as he thrust into her hand.  She edged closer, using the leg draped over his hip for leverage.  She brought her hand up, freeing him from her grasp.  His instinct immediately took over, and she felt him probing at her entrance, dampening himself in her wetness.

“Make love to me, Billy,” she said as he seemed to hesitate.  She nodded, emphasizing her words.

He slid into her, slowly, watching her face for any sign of discomfort.  As he became fully seated in her, she squirmed a little.

“Fuck.  Did I hurt you?” he asked, pulling back a little.  She gripped his hips, pulling him back to her.

“I’m okay.”  He didn’t move; his eyes searched her face.  “It’s a delicious kind of hurt.  I promise.”

She clenched around him purposefully.  An animalistic sound came from the back of his throat.  Mackenzie bucked her hips, range of motion limited by their position.  Incredibly slowly, Will withdrew from her, almost completely.  She whimpered.  Again, he entered her with intention and not much faster than he had withdrawn from her.  He continued at that pace for several minutes until they were both panting and covered with a fine sheen of sweat.

“Will, I think you’re going to kill me.”  She spoke through gritted teeth, focusing on breathing.

As Will tried to respond, he realized how close to the edge of his self-control he actually was.

“In a good way?” he growled.

“God, yes,” she replied, clamping around him again.

His speed began to increase, the pace growing more frenzied; for Mackenzie, she was coming up to and blurring the line between pleasure and pain.  He wasn’t going to last much longer, but he wanted—needed—to feel her climaxing around him.

He altered their position slightly, coming more on top of her and freeing one of his hands.  The now free hand reached between them and touched her, with feather-lightness.  Her eyes fluttered closed; her head lolled back.  She tensed all over, and he felt her walls begin to quiver around him.  _So close._  Even his thoughts were rough and ragged.  With another feather-light touch of his finger, Mackenzie came undone.  Her limbs went numb, and stars flashed in front of her eyes.  She heard Will’s name and realized that she was calling it.  Will followed her over the cliff and into the delicious oblivion of release. 

Mackenzie’s only coherent thought as she tried to breathe normally was that she was glad that she had end up fully supported by the chaise.  _I may never move again._   She let her eyes close, just for a moment, silently vowing to get up very shortly.

 

When Will opened his eyes, the sun was high above them, but there was a chill in the air.  He decided that the chill must have been what roused him from his blissfully sated slumber.  Mackenzie was cradled in his arm, her leg draped over his.  They both needed a shower; they both needed to eat.  _Thank god it’s Saturday._   The only way he was leaving the apartment today was if it was important to her.  He stared at the sleeping form of Mackenzie, unabashedly drinking in the sight of her:  mussed hair, slightly swollen, well-kissed lips, tank top below her breasts.  He growled lightly.  _She’s fucking perfect._

A gentle but cool breeze swept across the balcony, stirring Mac’s hair and bringing a pucker to her still exposed nipples.  _She’s going to catch cold._   The blanket that Will had brought outside with him was tangled underneath them; there was no way to free it and cover them without completely coming off the chaise.  With a sigh of regret, he stroked her hair, coaxing her toward alertness.

“Hi there,” he said, as her eyes opened slowly.

“It wasn’t a dream?” she asked, curling and uncurling her toes.

“Definitely not a dream.”

“Oh good,” she said with a happy and content smile.

“Not a fluke?”

“Feeling pretty confident about that.”  She pulled her shirt up to its proper place.  “I’m freezing.”

“That’s why I woke you.  I’d never forgive myself if you ended up with pneumonia because of an early morning tryst with on the balcony.”

Her eyes grew wide, and one hand flew to cover her mouth.

“Oh my god, Billy.  We had sex outside.”

He chuckled.  “Yes, we did.  Pretty fucking amazing sex outside.”  She blushed and cast her eyes down to his chest.  He tipped her chin up.  “You’re an incredible lover, Mac.  I’ve never wanted to please anyone the way I want to please you.  There is absolutely no reason for you to be embarrassed.”  She smiled tentatively and nodded.  “I don’t know if you’ve never heard it or if you’ve just never believed it, but, honey, I’m going to make sure you know how exceptional you are… in the bedroom and out of it.  That’s a promise, Mackenzie.”

Her smile was genuine now, and she pressed her lips to his.  Will sat up and tugged the blanket from under them.  He draped it around Mackenzie’s shoulders, and they walked inside.

“Make me breakfast, Billy?”

“Absolutely,” he said, “after a shower.”

“Good plan,” she said with a coy smile.  “Your shower or mine?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: we return to the real world; Will and Mac go back to work, and the world spins madly on.
> 
> I really hope you enjoyed and didn't think it was too much smut in too short of an order. Let me know what you think, okay?
> 
> Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate you, all of you, genuinely and a lot.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, friends!
> 
> Here's a short chapter for you... I couldn't get them out of the apartment right away, but I did get them out of the bedroom. That's progress, right?
> 
> Thanks for the indulgence on that second smut chapter; I appreciate all of y'all!

Chapter 11

By Sunday night, Will and Mackenzie had done little other than find satisfaction in each other’s arms, sleep, shower, and occasionally eat.  They sensed a perfect beginning to this new chapter of their relationship, no outside commitments or demands on their time besides learning the rhythm of each other in new ways.

Mackenzie had been gobsmacked when there had been a call from the doorman just before noon that morning.  Will’s new mattress had arrived.  He had dismissed her confusion with a shrug.

“I didn’t want to bring you into the bed that I shared with Nina.”

The romanticism of the gesture had touched Mac deeply, and she didn’t have words to express it to Will. 

Two nights in a row, they had slept in her room, but his bathroom was far superior to hers.  As they had showered that day, Mac had let the strong, warm jets of water work out the kinks in her lower back, sore from activity at which she was out of practice.  She had bitten her lip in obvious delight, and Will had tipped up her chin.  Serious eyes met hers.

“Tell the truth.  You only fell in love with me because of my shower, right?”

She smiled softly at him and reached forward to take him in her hands.

“It’s certainly _one_ of the reasons.”

He sucked in a sharp pull of air as she touched him.  He had impressed even himself with his recovery time in the past two days.  He had no idea how long this mid-20s stamina was going to hold out, but he fully intended to capitalize on it while it lasted.  He stepped back out of her touch, though.  They had declared a ceasefire a few hours earlier; Mackenzie ached all over, and Will had started to experience calf and toe cramps.  _Not as young as I used to be._  

They finished their shower, dressed, and Will headed for the kitchen to find something to cook for dinner.

“You know I can cook, too, right?” she asked as she poured them each a glass of wine.

“Sure, but not tonight.”  _I’m wooing you, Mackenzie._

“What are we going to say at work?”

“To whom?”  he asked, putting a pan on the stove.

“To everyone!  The staff, Charlie, HR.”

“Do we have to tell HR?”  He raised an eyebrow at her.  “Can’t we wait until we’re at least number two in the ratings, married, and with a baby on the way?”  He poured some wine into the pan.  “I don’t want to fight them about one of us changing divisions or some shit like that.  Our show works because we work.”

“Married with a baby on the way?”

Her tone was light, and she was more amused by the terms required before involving HR than by his summation of their relationship.  He tossed a shrug over his shoulder to her.

“Inevitable,” he said.

At that, Mackenzie did stop short.

“Excuse me?”

His continued nonchalant posture told Mackenzie that he was anything but.

“Well sure, Mackenzie.  Isn’t that where you see this going?”

“Billy.” She slid off the stool, came behind him, and slipped her arms around his waist.  Her cheek pressed to his back, and she continued, “I’m not going to change my mind.  I’m here, and I’m in this.  Let’s give it more than forty-eight hours before you start trying to bind us ‘til death do us part.  Alright?”  She paused for a moment.  “You might change your mind.”

“I’ve been waiting my entire life to feel this way, waiting for you, it turns out.  I can’t imagine a scenario where I’d change my mind.”

“I can’t either.  I promise you that I’m not going anywhere.  Believe that, and let it be enough for now.  We’ve got the rest of our lives to do the other stuff.”

He turned to face her; the look on his face was one of unmasked terror.  He had spent the weekend showing her—over and over—a physical manifestation of his love.  He had tried to tell her exactly how he felt.  _What if it wasn’t enough?_

Snippets of a thousand conversations played in Mac’s mind as she tried to understand the fear she saw on his face.  Bits and pieces of his childhood, described over bottles of some sort of varnish remover, floated across her mind’s eye:  Will, the little boy who gave of himself with all that he had, only to find that it was never enough—for his father, to keep his mother safe, to shield his brother and sisters from the horrors around them.  Will, the man who had tried to find love with a wife for whom, even with all his successes, he had never measured up, neither to her Daddy nor to her string of lovers.  Will, the man standing before her with his heart on his sleeve, the man who had put his fist through a wall in frustration at not being able to keep her safe, the man in whom her heart had finally managed to find a home, the man who looked at her with such cherished reverence that her breath caught in her chest.  Her Will. 

And suddenly, it all felt so terribly overdue.  She couldn’t imagine spending her life with anyone else; she didn’t want to.  Forty-eight hours or forty-eight years, her heart would still be saying the same things:  Will was her happy ending; she would be for him the one person who would never betray or abandon him.

He must have seen the realization wash over her face, must have understood what the tears swimming in her eyes meant because the fear left his eyes, and he wrapped his arms around her, crushing her body to his.  She clung to him as if her life depended on it.  They stayed that way for several minutes, allowing the magnitude of what they were feeling to sink in.

They smelled dinner burning on the stove at the same time, and Will jumped to pull the food off the heat.  He surveyed the damage and, deciding that the meal was still salvageable, covered it and put it in the oven to stay warm.

“It doesn’t have to be tomorrow, Mackenzie.  It’s yes, and that’s what matters.”

“You know what can wait for a little while?” she asked, a coy smile playing across her lips.

“Mmm?” he answered, taking a sip of his wine.

“That baby on the way.  You and I could use more time to…” she hesitated, choosing her words carefully, “practice, on our own schedule, before we put more players on the bench.”

He offered her a look of mild confusion.

“Okay, for a second, I thought that you were talking about sex, but you lost me with the bench and the players.”

“You’re right,” she sighed.  “I _was_ , but sports metaphors always seem to get away from me.”

He chuckled.

“We should probably start being a little more careful then, Mac.”

Her eyes flew open wide, her smile replaced with open-mouthed shock.

“Oh, my god.  It never even crossed my mind.”  She narrowed her eyes slightly at Will.  “Did it cross your mind, Will?”  He made a ‘scout’s honor’ gesture.

“Hand to god, not until I said the thing about being married with a baby on the way.”

“We might be the two least responsible adults in the entire world.”

“You’re not on anything, I gather?” he asked, completely nonplussed.

“Two years in Peshawar and then moving in with you didn’t really dictate needing to be.”

“Well, I’m out of intelligent questions to ask, honey.”  _Clearly, timing isn’t a concept that I buy into._

She shook her head at him, “I’m out of intelligent answers.  I’m not a girl who keeps good track of those things.”  She cut her eyes down, clearly embarrassed by the bluntness of the conversation.

“Well, I guess we’ll both have to get educated on the subject,” he said, offering a smile that she weakly returned.  “And in the meantime, we’ll be careful.”  She didn’t say anything.  “Honey, if it’s too late, it’s too late.  Worrying won’t help.  Everything will be fine.  We’ll be careful from now on,” he reiterated.

“I should have…” she began, but he cut her off.

“Do you regret this weekend?  Is there any part of it that you would go back and change?”  She shook her head.  “So, then, take comfort in the face that I’m pretty sure sperm don’t regenerate as quickly as we’ve been going through them.  We’re bound to have gotten a freebie or two out of the deal.”

At that, she did laugh.  It wouldn’t be the worst thing to ever happen; it wouldn’t even be a bad thing, just poorly timed.  Unplanned didn’t mean unwanted.  Waiting felt ideal; give them a chance to play and travel and be, just be, as a couple.  If, as Will had said, ‘it was too late’, they would handle it as she intended to handle all things in life moving forward:  together.  She gave Will a reassuring kiss and poured her wine into Will’s glass.  _Waste not, want not._ Just in case.

Four days later, when the first red streaks appeared, Mackenzie mentally berated herself for the tears she shed.  There had never been anything to worry about or to hope for; the timing had been off.  Yet, as she blotted her eyes so as not to smear her makeup, Mackenzie considered the life that she could see before her.  _Maybe we don’t have to wait_ too _long to give it a try._ This didn’t make a lot of sense to her, how quickly her life was moving forward, but she wasn’t going to question anything that felt so right.

 

_Ten days later_

“Tomorrow,” Mac said, decisively, coming through the door of his office.  Will frowned deeply, a pout forming on his lips.

“Why?”

“Because it’s been two weeks, and I think people are starting to see through the façade.”

“Say that word again.”

“Façade.  Now focus, Billy.”

“I love listening to you talk.”

“We tell them tomorrow.”

“All of them?”

“We’ll start with Charlie, and then tell the staff.”

“Fine.”  She nodded happily at his agreement but scowled lovingly at him as he continued.  “But HR can go straight to hell.  I’m not telling them anything that might end up leaked or land you in the tabloids.”

“So, you’ve got a lot of faith in HR, then?”

“None what-so-fucking-ever,” he replied cheerily.  “Charlie and Nancy are going to insist that we come for Thanksgiving.”

“That sounds lovely.”

Will’s false front of grumpiness dropped, and he grinned widely.

“Yeah, it does.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.. fluff and more fluff! As Election Day grows ever closer, I have a harder and harder time creating drama in this fictional world of ours.
> 
> The next chapter will have our lovers sharing their relationship with Charlie and the Newsroom family. And then, and I'm actually super excited about this, HOLIDAY CHAPTERS (corny, sappy, and delightfully romantic)! Thanksgiving! Christmas! Parties between the two holidays. New Year's Eve! So. Much. Happy. Fluff.
> 
> Thanks so much for reading! Each and every one of you has a piece of my heart!
> 
> Let me know what you think, and please let me know if there is anything in particular that you'd like to see over the holiday chapters!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, my dears... I'm going to start with an apology for falling off the face of the earth for a while. I'm sorry, very truly sorry! There was A. LOT. going on, and I couldn't find the emotional depth to give any attention to this story. I PROMISE that you don't want to read any of the nonsense that I've put on paper since you last heard from me-- self-indulgent, self-pitying, bummers of work. Trust me.
> 
> I'm here now, though, and hoping that some of you are still with me and reading along. Let me know if you are?
> 
> This chapter is format-divergent. Flashbacks are in italics; present time is denoted with standard formatting.

Chapter 12

“I’m actually not at all sure where to start,” Mackenzie began haltingly, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as she paused.

“Well, darling,” her mother said, gently clasping her oldest daughter’s hand between her own, “why not start where you left off last night?  That’s logical enough.  Isn’t it?”

Mackenzie nodded and smiled gratefully at her mother.

“Well, we had just told Charlie and Leona that we were together.”  She chuckled at the memory.  “I don’t think either of them was at all surprised.”

 

 

_“Leona,” Will nodded at the older woman.  “Charlie,” he said in the same tone.  “Mac and I have something that we need to tell you.  The thing is, Chief, Mac and I… we’re living together.”_

_“Well hell, Will.  I knew that.”  Leona’s tone made Mackenzie shake her head._

_“No, Leona… Mrs. Lansing… what Will means is that we’re_ living _together.”_

_At the continued silence from Charlie and Leona, Will shrugged at Mac and indicated that he would try again._

_“We’re living together because we are… you know… actually living together.”  Mac and Will exchanged another look.  He drug in a breath and trudged on.  “We’ve entered into a relationship of,” he paused, seeming to search for the right world, “an amorous nature.”_

_There was silence for a moment, and then Charlie held out his hand to Leona._

_“You owe me $50 bucks, Lee.”  Will’s head whipped to look incredulously at Charlie.  Leona scowled.  “I knew you kids wouldn’t make it through the holidays without spilling the beans.”_

_“You knew?”  Will was louder than he intended; Mac and Leona both jumped.  “Sorry.”  He directed his words at Mac.  “If you knew why did you put us through this farce of a meeting?”_

_“He wanted to win his bet,” Leona offered with disdain.  Charlie shrugged and grinned broadly before pulling Mackenzie into a warm hug._

_“I’m happy for you.  Nancy is, of course, expecting you both for Thanksgiving.”_

_At that, Will and Mac laughed._

_“We’d love to,” Mac said._

_“Hold on just one goddamn minute,” Leona said, setting her glass down hard.  “The first day that this affects the show or the network, I’m pulling the plug.  Fin.  End.  Kaput.”  She looked pointedly at the couple.  “Understood?”_

_“Of course, Leona.  But it won’t.  I can promise you that.”_

_Leona nodded once.  “You’re dismissed.”_

_Will waited for Mac to cross the office before placing a hand on the small of her back and escorting her into the lobby._

_“I can’t believe how easy that was,”  Will spoke quietly into Mac’s ear.  She giggled, relief that the encounter was over flooding through her._

_“I swear, I was just thinking the same thing.”  She leaned up and kissed Will’s cheek lightly.  “Ready to tell the staff?”_

_“If that’s what you want,” he said, genuinely offering acquiescence to her wishes._

_“I don’t like hiding us from them.”_

_“Well, let’s do it then!”  He squeezed her hand and stepped into the bullpen side-by-side with her._

“Of course, the staff was thrilled for us.  Maybe not very surprised either, though.”  Mac reflected for a moment.  “Probably thrilled for themselves, too.  Things suddenly felt very settled and permanent.  We were really making long-term changes to making the show better.  Will and I as a team solidified that to them, I think.”

Mackenzie rose and stretched, allowing a small groan to escape her lips.

“Darling, what if we take a stroll into the village?  It would do us both some good to stretch our legs.  You can tell me about Thanksgiving while we walk.”  Mac nodded and pulled her coat and her mother’s from the pegs on the wall.  “Maybe we can stop and have a spot of tea while we’re out.”

Mackenzie knew her mother well enough to spot the distraction being offered to her; right now, though, she was grateful for it, and she smiled warmly at her mother.

“That really would be delightful, Mum.”

They left the house arm in arm.

“Now, tell me all about your American thanksgiving with the president of your news division and his family.”

_“Will,” Mackenzie said through clenched teeth.  “Billy…”  She felt her fingers grasp his shoulders of their own accord.  “Mmmph.”_

_This time the protest died on her lips as Will bit down gently on her earlobe.  Mac moaned.  When he kissed her neck, she leaned into him.  As his hand pushed her sweater off her shoulders, her eyes flew open, and she wiggled out of his arms._

_“WILL!” she said firmly._

_“Yes ma’am?” he said, feigning innocence._

_“We can’t be late.  They’ll think that we never get out of bed.”_

_“We don’t usually,” he responded with a smug smile._

_“Billy, it’s Thanksgiving.  Chain me to the bed tomorrow.  Today, we’ve got to get out to Connecticut.”_

_“Chain you to the…”_

_“It was a figure of speech, Billy.”_

_She righted her sweater and reached for her lipstick.  Will swept her into this arms for a deep and breathtaking kiss._

_“There,” he said, stepping back from her.  “Now put on your make-up.”_

_Mackenzie attempted a firm expression but failed; a tender smile crept across her face as she reapplied her lipstick._

_They arrived at Nancy and Charlie’s home almost exactly on time, a near miracle to both Will and Mac’s thinking.  Nancy opened the door and immediately pulled Mac into a warm, maternal hug._

_“Mackenzie, dear, it’s been far too long since we’ve seen you!  Happy Thanksgiving, and welcome!”  She ushered them into the entryway and turned to Will.  “And you, my friend, why is it that this is the first time that I’m seeing the two of your together?”_

_Nancy took their coats and ended her mild scolding by making plans to get together before one of the many Christmas parties that both couples would be attending._

_“Nancy, the table is just lovely,” Mac said as everyone gathered around to sit for dinner.  Eleven others murmured their agreement._

_“Now,” Charlie spoke, commandeering the attention of the room as he took his place behind his chair, “some of you have been to many, many Thanksgiving dinners in this home.  Some of you are joining us for the first time.  Regardless, I welcome you all, officially.  You are always welcome here with us, be it a major holiday or a Tuesday night.  Nancy and I are always happy to have any or all of you.”  He paused to take a sip of his bourbon.  “In this family, as in many, on this day of gratitude and giving, we all give our thanks in the form of a blessing that we will hear from the reverend in just a few minutes.  The other way that we mark this day is by taking a turn to share one thing for which we are truly and humbly thankful.”  A few good-natured groans went up from the younger folks at the table, and Charlie offered a smile at his daughter.  “I ought to make you go first for being the ringleader of that.”  He paused to allow the chuckles to die down.  “This year, I will go first.  Nancy, my sweet girl, for more than 40 years, you’ve been my rock, my partner, and my friend.  I couldn’t be the man I am today without you.  Happy Thanksgiving, dear.”_

_Charlie raised his glass and everyone drank to Nancy, their matriarch.  Nancy spoke next, expressing love and gratitude to Charlie for their family, for their grandchildren, and for those whom she had come to know as family._

_“Will,” Nancy said as she took her seat, “why don’t you go next?”_

_“Age before beauty!” Katie, Charlie’s youngest daughter, exclaimed with a laugh._

_Will laughed along with everyone and stood._

_“You know, the past weeks have had me examining the changes that my life has undergone in the last several months, and there have been plenty of them.  But this year, for the first time since I was a very young boy, I have something incredibly rare to be thankful for.  Home.  I had all but given up on finding my own version of the Camelot that Charlie and Nancy have built here.  And then, because the universe has a comedic sense of timing, at the moment that I was genuinely reevaluating my direction, Mackenzie waltzed back into my newsroom.”_

_“My newsroom,” Mac and Charlie simultaneously interrupted.  The whole party laughed heartily._

_“Alright, she waltzed back into OUR newsroom.”  He paused to be sure that no further interjection was forthcoming.  “And in the span of a few weeks, she upended everything, invaded my house, my head, and my heart.  Mackenzie, the moment I let you into my soul was the moment it stopped searching.  I will, in fact, spend the rest of my life trying to be worthy of you.  I am so thankful for you.”_

_Mackenzie wasn’t sure at what point Will had stopped addressing the table, but she knew that their eyes were locked together, and she felt herself brush a tear from his cheek.  She reached out and took one of his hands between hers._

_“Billy, for as long as I can remember, I’ve been in search of a home of my own, a place where I was both safe and comfortable, a place that felt welcoming, regardless of whether I had been there an hour ago or a month ago.  You’re that for me.  We’ve both been searching for the same thing, Will.  I’m so grateful that we’ve found it together.”_

_Will used his free hand to gently wipe a tear from Mac’s cheek; both struck silent by their love for each other and their synchronicity._

_After a moment, Charlie spoke.  “Well, I think we’ve just gotten a sneak peek of the vows.”_

_The spell binding Will and Mac was broken, and they sheepishly look their seats amid good-natured jeers from the crowded table._

_“And just like every year, I think we’d better put a stop to the speeches before the food gets cold. “  Nancy smiled at Charlie._

_“Well, in that case, I’d better get to slicing this bird!”_

_And with that, the Thanksgiving meal commenced._

“It would never catch on in England,” Mac’s mother said as Mac finished her recounting of the holiday.  “Can you imagine your father standing in front of our family talking about things he feels grateful for?”

“Father?” Mac laughed.  “Talk about feelings?  With an audience?  Certainly not.”

Mackenzie paid for the tea they had consumed while they were talking, and her mother fetched their coats.

“Now dear,” Mac’s mother began as they started their walk back to the house, “continue with your tale, please.  I’m still not sure why you’re here with me and not there with him.”

“Well, after thanksgiving, there was an absolute flurry of Christmas parties.”

_Mackenzie’s eyes drifted shut, and she allowed her cheek to rest on Will’s chest as he masterfully led her around the dance floor.  The champagne she had been sipping all evening had finally made its way to her head, and she felt as though she was floating._

_“Still with me. McHale?”_

_The warmth of Will’s breath stirred her hair as Will’s words whispered into her ear._

_“Mmmhmm.  Right here with you.”  She opened her eyes and looked up at him.  “You’re really quite dreamy in that tuxedo.”_

_She felt the growl rumble in his chest._

_“And you know damn well what those dresses do to me.”_

_“Tell me again, Billy.”_

_He shifted their position on the dance floor, dropping his hand lower on her hip and bringing her body into total alignment with his.  She could feel him, hard, against her stomach._

_“That’s what you do to me, Mackenzie.  You turn me into a college freshman who absolutely cannot control himself.”_

_She sighed happily but did not respond.  His desire for her made her feel wanton and erased all inhibitions related to dancing so closely in such a public venue.  The music swelled, and Mac was whirled in an impressive pattern; she focused on keeping up gracefully.  Will was clearly familiar with the music.  As she spun back into his arms again, he kissed her temple again and murmured in her ear._

_“Ready for the big finale?”_

_“What?”  Her eyes snapped to his._

_“Trust me.”_

_Before she could respond, he leaned into her and kissed her deeply.  Mac didn’t even realize he was lowering her until he released her lips and she found herself fully dipped just as the music came to an end.  The small group that had stopped to watch applauded with vigor.  Mac felt herself flush and was only too happy to allow Will to right her and escort her from the dance floor.  The pressure of his hand on the small of her back kept her grounded._

_“We’re a smash,” he said as he helped her into her chair.  “Shall we give them an encore?”_

_“Not just now, Will.”  She took a long sip from the water glass in front of her._

_“You alright?”  Concern colored his tone._

_“I think the champagne’s gone to my head.”  She smiled reassuringly at him.  “Or maybe it’s the dance.  I just a need a moment to catch my breath.”_

_“Do you want to go on home?”_

_She made a face._

_“They’ve not even finished the silent auction bidding.  Won’t Leona be upset if you leave early?”_

_He stood and buttoned his coat.  A waiter stopped when Will made eye contact.  He handed the young man their coat check ticket._

_“Would you please have them pull our coats?”  The waiter nodded his assent and hurried off.  “I wrote a very large check in Leona’s name.  She won’t even notice.”  At Mac’s hesitance, he continued, “Besides, I don’t know how much longer I can go without peeling that dress off of you and…”_

_He paused to shake hands with a very pretty blonde.  Mackenzie began to frown, but the reassuring squeeze of Will’s hand, still tightly grasping hers, cemented her smile._

_“Anna.”_

_“William.”_

_“How are the kids?”_

_“Busier than ever.”_

_“And Dylan?”_

_“In Shanghai for business.”  The woman looked Mac up and down before addressing Will again.  “This must be Madison.”_

_“Mackenzie McHale.”  Mac dropped Will’s hand and offered it to the blonde._

_“Mac, this is Anna Howard-Burns.”_

_“Howard?” Mac repeated carefully._

_“Yes.  I’m Nina’s sister.”  She did not extend her hand to Mackenzie.  “And you’re the reason my sister is living on the west coast.”_

_“Be civil, Anna,” Will said, a warning tone tinging his voice._

_“Come off it,” Mackenzie said.  “I’m no more the reason for that than you are.  Your sister has been looking for an exit since the day she said ‘I do.’”_

_“Mackenzie.”  The warning tone was directed at her now._

_“No, please.  Tell me some more about a situation about which you know nothing.”_

_“You can’t have it both ways, Mrs. Burns,” Mac said with a blinding smile.  “I can’t be the cause of the demise of a marriage and have no standing to discuss it.”_

_“That will be quite enough of that,” Will said, taking Mac’s elbow and steering her away from Anna without another word._

_They crossed the rest of the ballroom in silence.  Mac broke the silence when Will was helping her into her coat.  She turned to face him, tears swimming in her eyes._

_“Oh, Billy!  I’m sorry!!”  Her face fell._

_On instinct, he gathered her close._

_“Mackenzie!  Honey, stop crying.  Everything is fine.”_

_“You’re angry.”_

_He laughed.  “I most certainly am not.  I’ve just seen Anna work, and it wasn’t worth our time to continue the encounter.”_

_“I shouldn’t have spouted off like that…”_

_“Stop!”  Will said emphatically.  “You’ve got nothing to apologize for.  Anna is a master of manipulation and goading.  We’re fine.”_

_“She blames me…”_

_“No, honey.”  His voice was soft as he put her in the car.  “She blames me.  She doesn’t know that Nina had lovers, and it would never occur to her that a marriage should be satisfying.  She blames me, and she knows that the easiest way to get to me is through you.”  He chuckled hollowly.  “I’m sorry that my past is interfering with our present.”_

_With a tender kiss to the side of her head, Will mentally declared the subject closed.  The last thing he wanted to do was put Mackenzie in a position to be hurt by his ex-in-laws._

_The next week, Will was adjusting his bowtie when Mac came out of the bedroom in a flawless, backless, black satin gown that made Will’s jaw actually drop._

_“Would you please zip me up?”_

_Will nodded dumbly and allowed his knuckles to gently graze her back as he reached for the zipper.  Her shudder told him all he needed to know.  They never made it to the party._

_Two nights later, dressing for their final formal event of the season, Mac emerged from the bedroom in full make-up and a robe.  Will frowned._

_“Are you okay?”_

_“Sure, but I’d actually like to attend this event.  So, you don’t get to see the dress until we are walking out the door.”_

_He smiled wolfishly at her._

_“Well, how will I know how your present will look then?”_

_“What present?”_

_He laid a long velvet box on the counter and took great pleasure in watching her eyes grow very wide.  She looked between Will and the box for a moment before slipping the robe off of her shoulders and letting it pool around her ankles.  Will sucked his breath in sharply._

_“Wow, honey.  Just wow.”  She flushed under his admiring gaze and took a tentative step toward him.  “Come see how you like this, Mac,” he said earnestly.  “I’ll keep my hands to myself.”_

_He opened the box, and she gasped at the incredible diamond necklace inside._

_“Oh Will.”_

_“I’m sorry that we missed the party the other night because I couldn’t keep my hands off you.  Forgive me?”_

_His apology had been delivered while he fastened the necklace around her neck._

_“You shouldn’t have, Billy.  Really.  This is gorgeous, but it’s too much.”_

_“Mackenzie, there is nothing in my power to give you that I would deny you.  Nothing will ever be too much for you when you’re everything to me.”_

_She turned and kissed him fiercely._

_They danced the night away, oblivious to the world around them.  He was completely enthralled with her; she couldn’t tear herself away from him.  They were captivating to watch; even the band extended their set to prolong the show.  Finally, when Mac and Will were the last two people on the dance floor, the music quietly drifted into silence._

_“I guess that’s all for the exercise portion of our evening,” Will said as he led her from the floor._

_Mackenzie cocked an eyebrow at him and spoke for his ears only._

_“But I thought you liked this dress?”_

_Will choked back a laugh.  “That is not what I meant, Mackenzie.”_

_“Sure.”  She smiled demurely up at him.  “You give a girl diamonds and suddenly lose interest in taking her to bed.”  She clicked her tongue and paused for effect.  “I had no idea.  What a disappointment.”_

_He could tell that she was baiting him, but he couldn’t stop himself from rising to it._

_“For two days, you’ve bemoaned the fact that we missed the party on Thursday.  So, I go out of my way to make sure you have a lovely time tonight, to make it special for you, and you immediately jump to conclusions.”  His hand reached to touch the necklace and trailed across her breast as it dropped again.  Mac’s eyes clouded with desire immediately.  “I’ll never understand women as long as I live.”_

_Mac took a sip of her drink and dropped her hand to her knee.  It migrated to Will’s knee, and a frisson of awareness skated across his senses.  When the tips of her fingernails grazed the same spot, harder this time, he had to remind himself to breathe._

_“Mackenzie Morgan,” he growled, his voice dangerously low, “if you want to make it out of this room in a civilized manner, you will stop that immediately.”_

_A smug smile took up residence on her lips._

_“Maybe not so disinterested,” she quipped._

_Will released the glass that he had been clutching and slid an arm around the back of her chair.  As she leaned forward in anticipation of meeting Will’s lips, his fingers, ice cold from the glass, came to rest on Mac’s bare back.  His lips captured hers, swallowing the small but indignant squeak that she emitted.  He grinned widely and pulled away._

_“Enough games for tonight, Mac?”_

_“Truce,” she pouted, tugging her bottom lip between her teeth and worrying it there for a moment.  “That was startlingly cold, though.  I feel sure that this truce is bound to be broken later.”_

_“Mmm.  Well, at least I’ve been fairly warned.”_

_The couple continued their flirting, carefully schooling their expressions so as not to tip their hand to the world around them.  Dessert was served.  Another round of cocktails was delivered to the table.  The executive director of the benefiting charity of the evening made a short thank you speech and offered a toast to Leona Lansing, who made a very sizable donation to the cause just a few moments before._

_“I swear, Leona only forces us to come to these things to guilt us into supporting her pet charities on top of our own.”_

_“That, and to keep her pet dressmakers in business.”_

_“So cynical, Mac,” Will said with a smile.  “It’s nice, though, at this time of year, to make sure that we are sharing with our fellow man.”_

_Mac kissed him gently on the cheek._

_“You’re a good man, Will McAvoy.”_

_For a moment, Will weighed the cost of the extravagant gift he had placed around Mackenzie’s neck earlier that evening against the good that the money could do for those with less than enough.  He watched her reach up and gently, absently finger the necklace, saw her smile as she did.  It was worth every single penny to make the incredible woman that he loved smile and feel loved.  All the same, he added another zero to the check he was writing this evening.  He had worked hard to get from Nebraska to the anchor desk at ACN, but he also worked hard to remember from where he came, to remember the folks who hadn’t necessarily made it this far, yet.  He had nieces and nephews back home who had college funds about which they had no knowledge.  While he couldn’t bring himself to spend the holiday season in the place that held so few good memories for him, there were always gifts under the tree for the kids and some sort of remembrance for the adults; there was a phone call to each sibling on each holiday, genuine and warm, and with understanding on both sides for the separation.  Mac had gathered bits and pieces of this for years and had stumbled into the thick of it this season.  Her heart had become his all over again in watching him shop and wrap and write cards to his siblings.  The holidays were not just a set of festive parties for Will, she had noted._ He keeps Christmas as well as Dickens could ever have imagined. 

_“Thank you for making this season so special for me, Billy,” she said, voice charged with emotion._

_His head turned quickly from the conversation that he had just started with a VP from the entertainment division.  The tone in her voice was discernible only to him._

_“You okay, honey?”_

_She felt tears well up in her eyes and blinked rapidly to clear them._

_“Yes.  Yes!  I was just saying thank you … for this whole season and for the meaning that you’ve given it.”_

_Will’s mouth opened and then closed.  He swallowed visibly and then opened his mouth again.  Slowly, he swallowed the words he was trying to form and nodded once at the woman whose heart he had dedicated himself to deserving.  He squeezed her hand, trying to impart the emotion coursing through him into the contact._

_Three days later, Will woke to the smell of fresh coffee and still-warm from the oven muffins.  He stretched languidly and smiled as he heard a small clatter and a muffled expletive.  A moment later, the bedroom door eased open, and Mac came into the bedroom with breakfast on a tray.  She had dug out his mother’s silver coffee pot, he noted with a full heart._

_“Merry Christmas, Billy.”_

_“Merry Christmas, Mackenzie.  What do you have there?”_

_“Christmas breakfast.  I thought it might be cozy to have it in bed, just this morning.”_

_He smiled widely at her as she sat the tray at the foot of the bed and gingerly crawled up next to him.  He gathered her close and held her for a moment, taking in the scent of her and reveling in the peace._

_“Thank you for getting up so early to cook, honey.”_

_“You’ll have to do the heavy lifting later with the ham before everyone gets here.  It was the least I could do.”_

_His arm tightened around her, and she savored the moment.  Her.  Him.  Together.  With their ‘family’ coming for Christmas dinner.  In their home.  Yes, this was how a holiday was supposed to be._

“Well, it all sounds rather lovely and picturesque, darling.”  Mac nodded glumly, and her mother continued.  “Then why are you sitting in my kitchen on the 30th of December, an ocean away from your life, with that tragic look on your face?”

“It’s his ex-wife, Nina.  She’s pregnant.”

“Did he throw you over for her?”  The yelp from her mother was incredulous.

“God no!  I’m not even sure that he knows.  But she’s far along, Mum.  They had to be married when she got pregnant.  He’d never abandon his own child, and I’d never ask him to.”

“You don’t know that he’s even aware of the situation.  And you’ve hopped a plane and beat feet out of the country?”  Mac’s mother’s eyebrows climbed.

“I couldn’t be there when he found out.  I couldn’t see his face.  What if…” she trailed off.

“Darling, does he know you’re gone?”

“He doesn’t know where, or why.”

“You’ve got to call him, Mackenzie.  Right now.  How terribly unfair to Will for you to have made such an assumption and flown the coop.”

Mackenzie’s cheeks burned with shame, and she cast her eyes down like a reprimanded schoolgirl.  Without a word, she picked up the phone that her mother had slid toward her and dialed the familiar number. 

“Billy?  It’s me.”

Mac’s mother heard the gasp from the other side of the room.

“Mackenzie!”  Will paused, drawing in an audible breath.  “Honey, where the fuck are you?  Are you alright?”  Mac sat silently for a moment.  “Mac?”

“I’m okay.  I’m in England.  I’m with my mum.”  She tossed that last bit in, hoping he wouldn’t mistake the reason for her impromptu trip.

“Is you mom okay?  What the hell is going on, Mac?”

Mac took a deep breath and started talking.  Her mother smiled and pushed back from the table, leaving them to talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the end of our chapter! Content question for you: do you want to see NYE and Valentine's Day, or are the holidays played out?
> 
> I feel a little rusty, and I really hope y'all enjoyed this. I did what I could to backtrack without putting up a Christmas story on Valentine's Day.
> 
> I always love to hear from all of y'all.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for some (brief but ultimately satisfying) smut at the end of the chapter!
> 
> Back again with a chapter that got away from me... the rest of NYE to follow.
> 
> Hope y'all dig it!

Chapter 13

“What the hell happened, Mackenzie?”  Will paced back and forth in his office, trying to maintain his composure but not having much success.  “One minute you’re in my bed, and the next thing I know you’re across the ocean!  Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Will,” she said for the second time.  “I’m sorry that I…” she stopped, unsure of how to apologize without tipping her hand.  “I’m just sorry.”

“Are you coming back?”

She could hear the fear in his voice, and her heart ached for him.  She hated that she was the reason for the frenetic pacing ringing through the phone.

“Of course I’m coming back!”

“Took two years last time, Kenz.”

Mackenzie blinked as though she had been slapped.  He hadn’t referred to her by that pet name since the first time they had been together.  _Can I blame him?_

“Billy.”  The name tumbled forth imbued with a wealth of emotion.  He didn’t respond; her tone caught him off guard.  “Oh Billy, I’m sorry.  It never occurred to me that popping off to the other side of the ocean would… I’m coming back, Billy.”

“When?”  He wanted to believe her, desperately, and she could hear it in his voice.  He was also badly shaken, and she could hear that, too.

“I--- I’m not sure.”  _Just ask him!  Ask him if he knows!_   Her thoughts were interrupted by a feral growl on Will’s end of the phone.

“Fine.” 

The line went dead.  Mackenzie felt the tears well up and shut her eyes in an attempt to keep them from spilling over.  For a moment, she clutched the phone close to her chest, focused on breathing, and tried to keep her emotions in check.

“Everything alright, darling?”

Mackenzie heard her mother’s voice, but couldn’t find her voice to respond.  She nodded once in her mother’s direction and pressed the screen, redialing the number.  Ring-bip.  Ring-bip.  _He’s on the other line._   Ring-bip.  Ring-bip.  Voicemail.  _Could be work._   _It’s not work._

“Mackenzie?”

Her mother’s hands on her shoulders startled Mac from her trance-like state.  She turned to face her, and the tears spilled over.

“Oh, Mum!  I’ve fucked everything up.”  She buried her face in her mother’s shoulder and sobbed for a moment.  Abruptly, she straightened.  “I’ve got to go home.  I’ve got to go to him.”

“Alright, Mackenzie.  We’ll see if we can’t get you out on the first plane tomorrow.”

Mackenzie nodded and dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief that her mother had pressed into her hand.

“Mum, these are so impractical.  Lace doesn’t dry tears.”  She sniffed lightly.

“They’re pretty, dear.  And this is England.  How often do we dissolve into a puddle on this side of the world?”  Mackenzie smiled, just a little.  “Now, you take yourself off and see to your travel arrangements.  I’ll get dinner started.  Your father will be home in a few hours, and he’ll be glad to have one more meal together before you leave.”  Mackenzie nodded and turned to do as instructed.  Her shoulders slumped just a little; she looked defeated.  “Mackenzie?”

“Mmm?”  Mac turned her head back toward her mother but not her body.

“It’s going to be alright, honey.  You’ll be home in less than a day, and then you can put everything to rights.”

“I hope so.”

 

Dinner was a quiet affair.  The ambassador and his wife did their best to keep cheerful conversation with their daughter.  Mackenzie made an effort to engage with them but found herself drifting in and out of the flow, her thoughts jumping back and forth between banks of the Atlantic at light speed.

“What time does your flight leave in the morning, little girl?”

“Around 6 am, Dad,” Mackenzie said.  “I’m sorry to have arrived and departed so abruptly.”  She offered a conciliatory smile.

“Nonsense, Mackenzie.  You’re always welcome here.  Your mother and I are pleased to see you, even if it is quite a whirlwind.”  He patted his daughter’s hand.  “How about a glass of brandy, dear?  The three of us might retire to the study and try to enjoy our last few hours together.”

“I’m not really in the mood for brandy, Daddy, but I’ll happily sit in front of the fire while you and Mum have one.”

“Right.  Let’s then, shall we?”   He offered his arm to his daughter and smiled at his wife.  “Mackenzie, dear, try to keep your chin up, eh?  This McAvoy seems to have a sound head on his shoulders.  A few days in England isn’t going to change the way he feels about you.”

“I know.  I do.  But you should have heard his voice.  I’ve disappeared on him before.  When I left on the overseas assignment, I took off without so much as a ‘by your leave’.  I was gone for—“

“Two years.  Yes, dear.  We remember.  You were gone from us, too.”  The tone in Mackenzie’s mother’s voice almost brought tears to her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Mum.  Really.  I needed to get away and I didn’t handle any of it well.”

“It’s alright, darling.  I only meant that we can appreciate Will’s perspective.  No lasting damage here.  I think your father was implying that there won’t be any lasting damage on Will’s end either.”

“Precisely, dear.  Well said, indeed.” 

Mackenzie smiled.  Her father’s unique speaking cadence was always soothing to her.  He started a story about his work that digressed into the ritual clothing of a small African tribe and then turned a corner into the latest proceedings in Parliament.  As her father continued to wend through his conversational maze, Mackenzie stifled a yawn and snuck a glance at her watch.  It was almost 11 pm.

“I think I’m going to go to bed.  I’ll need to leave by 4 am, and I’m going to try to get some sleep before then.”

“Have you already ordered a car?”  Her father was reaching for a phone before she could even answer.

“Yes.  I’ve got a call already.  Thank you, though.”  Mackenzie pressed a kiss to her father’s cheek and pulled her mother into a quick hug before retiring from the study.  After the door had clicked shut and Mackenzie’s footsteps had faded on the stairs, the ambassador addressed his wife.

“Now my dear, suppose you tell me exactly what happened here today.  Will everything in New York really be alright when she returns?”

“Perhaps.  If he feels about her the same way she feels about him, I think it will be fine.  We spent most of the day in conversation.  It’s too much to share after two brandies, but I think we can safely summarize with the trite statement about ex-wives being millstones around a new wife’s neck.”

“NEW wife?” the ambassador roared coming out of his chair.

“It was a generalization, dear.  As far as I know, they’ve not discussed marriage in any real way.”  Her husband retook his seat, and she rose to pull the glass across the fire.  “We should probably find our way to bed, as well.”

 

Mackenzie rolled over again, huffed, and pummeled her pillow in an attempt to settle down and shut her brain off.  A car passed by, breaking the silence of the quiet night.  She glanced at the clock beside her bed, aware of the tick-tock signaling the passage of time.  _Midnight.  It’s almost not worth trying to sleep._   The sound of another car and then a door slamming didn’t pierce the fog that Mackenzie was trying to lose herself in.  However, the sound of banging on her parent’s front door sent her bolting upright and reaching for her robe as she headed down the stairs.

She flipped the porch light on and flung open the door, prepared to rout whichever neighborhood child or intoxicated cousin was causing the racket.

“Billy!” she cried, flinging herself at the travel-worn man.  “You’re in England!”

“Your devotion to the obvious is outweighed only by your uncanny ability to disappear at the drop of a hat.”

She stepped back and looked up at him, needing to see his expression to weigh his words.  He was looking her up and down, clearly exhausted and nervous.  In his eyes, an unwavering love for her shone through any doubts either had.  Mackenzie opened her mouth, but all of her words seemed inadequate.

“You’re here,” she finally managed.

“I didn’t come after you last time you got on a plane.  I won’t make that mistake again.”

Mackenzie threw her arms around his neck and offered her lips to his.  She heard the thump of his bag hitting the porch, felt his arms circle her waist, and his lips crashed to hers.  After a few moments, he cupped her cheek with the palm of his hand and broke the kiss.

“Goddammit, Mac.  You scared the hell out of me.”  He stared into her eyes, searching for a reason, an explanation, any sign.

“I’m sorry.  I can’t even explain how sorry.”  She tugged his hand over the threshold and brought Will inside.  She shut the door and locked it, with a glance down the hall toward her parent’s bedroom.  No light shone under the door.  Pressing a finger to his lips, she led the way away from her parent’s sleeping quarters and toward the kitchen.  “Do you want a cup of tea?”  She put the kettle on as she spoke.

Will shot her an exasperated look.

“I want an explanation, Mackenzie.”

“Have some tea, Billy.  You look exhausted.”  The kettle started to hum, and Mac pulled it from the stove before it could whistle.  She poured two cups and added tea sachets.  “Let it steep, now, or it won’t be good, and you’ll burn your tongue.”

“God, you’ve been here for two days, and you’ve already assumed your parent’s heritage.”  He chuckled and reached to tuck a lock of hair behind Mackenzie’s ear.

“How did you get here so quickly?”

“I got on the first flight out after we spoke.  There was one leaving from JFK in 90 minutes.  I barely made it.”

She nodded.  They sat in comfortable, if heavy, silence as the tea steeped.  Finally, Mackenzie removed the tea bag from her cup and nodded to Will that he should follow suit.  He took a long sip, as did she.

“Will, it’s very late, and I don’t think this is a one cup chat.  Can’t we put it off until the morning?”

“Look at me, Mac.”  She raised her eyes to his.  “Are you alright?  I mean, you look alright, but I don’t…”

“I’m fine.  Honestly.”

“Then, why?”

“Tomorrow, Billy.  Please?”

“Alright honey.  Tomorrow.”  He set both of their teacups in the sink.  “Got somewhere for me to sleep?”

“Right next to me.”  She smiled shyly at him and was rewarded by Will waggling his eyebrows at her.

“In your parent’s house?  Why Miss McHale!  I’m scandalized.”

“Not yet, but I’m certain we could arrange for you to be,” she responded with a small giggle.  He chuckled too and reached to take her outstretched hand.  In that moment, certainty settled over both of them; whatever had gone wrong to send Mackenzie across the pond, whatever Will’s response would be, they would survive it and come out stronger on the other side.

Will toed off his shoes at the bottom of the stairs, not wanting to disturb Mac’s parents and hefted his bag in one hand, never breaking contact with Mackenzie.  They climbed the stairs in silence, both lost in thought.  Once the door was shut behind them, Mackenzie immediately shed her robe and slid between the sheets.

“Kinda small,” Will noted with raised eyebrows.

“We’ll fit.”

“Are you parents going to have a fit when they find me here tomorrow?”

“I should think not.  They’ll be thrilled to have company on New Year’s Eve.”

“I guess tomorrow _is_ New Year’s Eve.  What a shame.”  Mackenzie raised an eyebrow and shot a questioning look.  “I know you’ve got a new dress in the closet at home.  You know how much I love those dresses of yours.”

“We’ll find another time to debut it.  Now come on, have a quick rinse off, and come to bed.  You’ve had a long day, and we’ve got another ahead of us tomorrow.” 

She stifled a yawn.  The emotional toll of the last few days and the exhaustion that came from not sleep well were finally catching up with her.  With Will so close, she shut her eyes and let sleep overtake her.  When Will emerged from the bathroom a short time later, he smiled to see Mackenzie snoring lightly.  _We’re gonna get through this, Mac.  I know we are._   He slid under the blankets and gently pulled her body to his.  Mac stirred a little, lips pressed into a light pout at being disturbed.  As Will settled around her, she relaxed into him and the furrows that had taken up residence in her brow over the last few days smoothed themselves out.

“Mmm love you. Billy,” she mumbled through her sleep.

“I love you, honey.”  He pressed a kiss to the back of her head and shut his eyes, willing the questions that still needed answers to keep themselves at bay until the next morning.

 

Daylight streamed through the window, dancing across Will’s eyes.  They opened slowly, and he took a minute to orient himself.  The feel of Mackenzie beside him was all the reassurance he needed.  He wiggled a little trying to right his joints but not willing to cede his position next to Mac.  She groaned lightly, wakefulness toying with her mind as well.

“Happy New Year’s Eve, honey,” Will said quietly. 

His hand slipped from her hip to splay across her stomach and turn her toward him, almost under him.  She moved willingly and offered her lips to him.  He seized the opportunity and kissed her deeply.  The kiss was just starting to escalate when there was a knock at the door.

“Mackenzie, darling!  You’ve missed your flight!  And do you know if one of your brothers is here?  There are shoes...”

“They’re Will’s shoes, Mum,” Mac said with all the composure she could muster.  “He arrived late last night.”  Mac and Will both bit back a laugh at the sound Mac’s mother made.

“Oh!  He’s… he’s here?”

“Yes ma’am,” Will said, entering the conversation.  “I arrived just after midnight.”  He got out of bed, adjusted his pajamas and opened the bedroom door.  “It’s nice to see you again,” he offered with a warm smile.

“Ah, William!” Mac’s father cleared the landing as Will was opening the door.  “This does make things easier.  Good to see you, son.”

Mackenzie sat dumbfounded on the bed.  The last time her parents had discovered a man in her room it had taken a national order to calm them down.

“Well, you two have lots to talk about.  We’ll leave you to it.  I’ll send up breakfast in a bit.  Coffee for you, Will?”

“That would be great.  Thanks.”  Will shut the door behind him as her parents descended the stairs arm in arm.  “Seems that your parents have a good idea about why you’re here.  Want to let me in on the secret?”

_It’s now or never.  Just ask him._

“Did you know?”  Will sat on the edge of the bed and waited patiently for her to continue.  “Did you know that Nina is pregnant?”  He shrugged lightly.  _How is that my concern?  We’ve been divorced for months._ “Really pregnant, Will.”

Without a word, he stood and started digging through the pockets of the jacket he had been wearing upon his arrival.  Finding his phone, he punched the familiar number and turned to look at Mackenzie.  Her lips were still plump from being thoroughly kissed, but she had drawn her knees up to her chest.  She looked, to Will, like a lost child.

“Mackenzie,” he waited until she met his gaze, “it doesn’t matter how this turns out.  Nothing can change that you own me, honey.  I’m yours.  You’re mine.  That’s just how it is.”  She nodded, but he could tell she wasn’t entirely sure.  “Nina,” his tone changed as his ex-wife answered the phone.  “Yes.  I just heard.”  He began to pace.  Nina talked for almost a minute before Wil interrupted her.  “Damnit, Nina!  Is he mine?”  His face registered shock and then anger.  “Absolutely not.  You’re crazy.  That’s not fair to any of us, least of all the baby.  You’re out of your mind.”  He waited as Nina continued to pour out her prefabricated arguments, months in the making.  “Nina, I’m happy for you.  Really, I am.  But I don’t give a damn what your family thinks, and I will go to court over this.”

Mackenzie gasped; her hand flew to cover her mouth.  _It’s his baby, and she won’t let him near it._ She watched as he ended the connection and stared at the phone for a moment.  He turned to Mac, utter disbelief etched in his features.

“She wanted me to put my name on the birth certificate and then sign away my rights so that what’s-his-name with the waterfront house in California could ‘adopt’ him.”

“You can’t be serious.”  He nodded at her.  “She expects you to legally abandon your own child?”

“What?”  Will sat down on the edge of the bed, stunned.  “No!”

Mackenzie’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“But you said…”

“Mackenzie, honey, the baby isn’t mine.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I’m pretty damn sure, Mackenzie.”

“You certainly jumped for that phone quickly for someone who is ‘pretty damn sure’.”  Mac wasn’t sure where she had found this combative tone, but it felt better than with the fear that had been plaguing her for days, and so she went with it.

“In the last eighteen months, Nina and I slept together exactly twice.  More than a year ago, and the night she asked for a divorce.”  He shook his head at the memory and reached out to take Mac’s hands.  “I don’t know if I thought I could convince her to stay or if it was a last hoorah, but that was it.”  Mackenzie stayed stiff, not following Will’s logic.  “Mac, she was already pregnant when she asked me for the divorce.  Just barely, but already pregnant.  There’s no biological way that he’s my son.”

Before Mac could say anything, there was a soft rap on the door.

“Kids, I’ve brought some breakfast.  And coffee.”

Mac pulled on her robe and opened the door.  She smiled warmly at her mother and accepted the tray.

“Thanks, Mum.  We appreciate it.”

“Yeah… Thank you,” Will echoed.

“Just call down if you need anything.  We may step out later, but for now, we’re here.”

“Alright.  We will.  Thanks, Mum.”

The door shut, and Mac poured Will a cup of coffee.  She handed it to him, and he accepted it with murmured thanks.  As she poured herself a cup of tea, he raised an eyebrow at her.

“Tea again?”

“When in England,” she offered with a lopsided shrug.  She sipped her tea defiantly.

“Why are you here, Mac?”  Will asked as the pieces started to slide together in his mind.  “Why did you get on a plane and run home?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, WHY did you get on a plane and leave the country?”

“I… I was nervous about your reaction to the news.”  She kept her eyes focused on her cup of tea, suddenly ashamed of her actions.

“The news?  That Nina was pregnant?”  Mac nodded.  “What did you think was going to happen?”  Mac shrugged, feeling more and more like a scolded child.  “Even if it had been my child, what did you think would change between us?”

At that, Mac’s head came up, and fire blazed in her eyes.

“Seriously?”  She shook her head when Will opened his mouth.  “You might have had a child.  A child, Will.  I know you, and never in a million years would you ever had abandoned your own child.  Logically, it follows that you would do anything you had to do to be in his life.”

“Being a part of a child’s life has nothing to do with being with Nina.”  He put up his hands and physically halted the conversation.  “You realize that this is a purely academic conversation.  Nina’s baby IS NOT mine.”  Mackenzie nodded at him.  _Fuck it.  Let’s get to the heart of the thing._   “Did you really think I could leave you, for anything?”  His voice dropped, the betrayal he felt evident, and Mackenzie immediately realized how foolish she had been and how close she had come to jeopardizing what they shared.

Mackenzie set her teacup down and launched herself at Will.  At the last moment, he realized that she intended to collide with him, and he barely got his cup onto the side table.  His arms wrapped around her waist, anchoring her to him; he held her tighter when he felt her shaking with silent tears.

“Mackenzie!”  He held her while she cried for a few minutes, hand migrating to stroke her hair.  Finally, he spoke again.  “What’s going on, Mac?”

“Oh Billy,” she spoke softly, and he had to turn his head to catch her words, “I’m so sorry.  I _know_ that you wouldn’t leave me.  I got bound up in the moment, and the next thing I knew, I was at my parent’s front door.  I don’t doubt you.  You have to believe that.  I don’t doubt your commitment to me.”  She shifted a little on Will, pushing herself up to meet his eyes.  “I’m sorry I didn’t _act_ like I understood that this is steadfast.”

Will’s hand continue to stroke her hair, keeping a steady cadence, working to calm the emotions raging in both of them.

“I was so afraid that you weren’t coming back.  I’ve been trying so hard to show you how I feel, been trying to deserve you, Mackenzie.  And when you were gone… I didn’t know what to think.”

“I’m sorry, Billy, so very sorry.  I’ve been waiting for this for my entire life.  I would never leave you, not now that we’ve found each other.”

“We’re okay?”

“We’re always okay.”

He took a deep breath, banishing all of the fear that had plagued him in the last days.  With a simple nod, he shifted his grip on Mackenzie just enough to align her body full with his.  Her head shifted, and she settled her head into the crook of his neck, tension draining from her.  It took only minutes for restful sleep to claim them, the emotional weight of the last days draining away.  About an hour later, Mackenzie came awake, still fully on top of Will.  Most of him was still dozing peacefully.

_I wonder if he’ll really be scandalized…_

Will came awake to Mackenzie’s lips closing around him.

“Mac,” he hissed through clenched teeth.  She glanced up at him and smirked without ceasing her ministrations.  “Are you sure?  In your parent’s house?”  It was a herculean effort to get the words out.

Mackenzie nodded and continued.  It didn’t take long for her to feel him growing harder and drawing up into himself.  She reached up and pressed a finger to his lips as she shifted up his body and teased herself against his hardness.  His lips parted, and he bit down gently on her finger.  Mac’s breath caught in her throat, forcing her to bite down hard on her own lip.  And then, with confidence of purpose, Mackenzie sank down on Will, taking him fully inside her.  Neither were able to fully swallow the groans that bubbled up from deep inside.  The groans turned into laughter as both sets of eyes grew wide at the noise they made; they hushed each other through their laughter.  When Mac leaned forward to clamp her hands over Will’s mouth to quiet him, the movement drove all laughter from their mind.  Will’s hands grabbed Mac’s hips and anchored her to him.  He thrust up into her, gently at first, until she squirmed with insistence.  His rhythm quickened, and Mac caught her forearm between her teeth to muffle the sounds she couldn’t hold back.  She leaned forward just enough to increase the friction between her thighs infinitesimally.

Will smiled in spite of himself; he knew her patterns and could sense her rhythms.  With a final hard thrust, he levered Mac’s body flush with his and caught her scream with his mouth as he captured hers.  Seconds later, he followed her over the edge with a ragged groan.

“Just... yes,” Mac eked out minutes later.

“Do you think they heard us?”  He was battling sleep again, somewhere between jet-lag ( _Does a 5-hour time change really qualify me for jet-lag?_ ), relief at fixing 'the thing' with Mackenzie, and the exhaustion that always came after making love to the woman for whom he would go to the ends of the earth.  “Do you think they’ll bother us if we nap?”

“Shhh, Billy.  That’s a lot of questions.”  She interrupted herself with a yawn.  “Everything will be fine.”  She shut her eyes and fell asleep, still on top of Will and wrapped in his arms.

 

From the kitchen below, Mac’s mother and father found their tea interrupted by the sound of both Will and Mac snoring contentedly.

“I think it’s safe to assume that they’ve patched things up.”

“And how!”  The ambassador reached over and patted his wife’s hand.  “Shall we make a plan for the evening, then?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for stopping by! Did you like it? Was it too much filler? I wanted to resolve the Nina-conflict before the next big shoe drops, and England seemed the best place to do that!
> 
> Coming up: NYE, a major event, Valentine's Day... for starters
> 
> I ALWAYS love to hear from y'all... it's super motivating!!! I really hope you enjoyed chapter 13!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: fluff, just utter fluff ahead... Hope you like it!

Chapter 14

Wakefulness came first to Will; being unable to move at all without shifting Mackenzie had left him unsettled before she was awake.  With the gentlest touch possible, he kissed Mac’s temple and rolled her off of him and onto her side.  She snuffled lightly but didn’t rouse; so, Will slid from the bed and grabbed his kit from his bag.  After a quick shower, Will dressed and slipped unnoticed from the bedroom where Mackenzie snoozed on.  As he descended the stairs and headed into the kitchen, he cleared his throat to make his presence known to Mac’s parents.

“William!”  Mac’s mother smiled warmly at him.

“Mrs. McHale, I’m sorry for the unexpected visit.”

“Nonsense, dear.  It’s good that you came.  Did you two get… sorted?”

“I think we’re well on our way,” Will said carefully.  He waited a beat before asking, “Do you think I might borrow one of your cars?  I need to go out briefly, and I’d really like to be out and back before Mackenzie wakes up.”

Will caught the ambassador’s expression as he sat up straighter.

“You’re, of course, welcome to anything you need.  Are you comfortable driving here?”

“I’ll manage, sir.  I don’t think I’m headed too far into town.”

“It’s a holiday, son.  Are you certain they’ll be open?”

Will nodded.  “I called them before I got in the shower.”

The ambassador stood up and set his chair back from him purposefully.

“I’ll drive you, my boy.  Can’t have you getting lost out there, eh?”

The pair was out the door before Will could even respond.  _Well, that happened fast._   As the car started, and the ambassador put it into gear, Will played the encounter forward, anticipating his next move.

“Ambassador, it’s fortuitous that you’re making this trip with me.”

“How’s that?  Am I headed into town?”

“Yes, sir.  Town.”  _He’s really not that much older than I am._ “Well, this saves me from trying to corner you later.”  The older man raised an eyebrow but said nothing.  “See, this errand we’re on,” he faltered momentarily, looking for the right words, “concerns Mackenzie.”  Still nothing from the ambassador.  “I know that Mackenzie and I haven’t officially been together for what might be termed a ‘long time’, but I love her, sir.”  _Shit.  Don’t fumble the ball, McAvoy._ Will’s internal monologue wasn’t helping him, but he continued, “We’re headed to Jason Charles, sir.”  Comprehension dawned on the ambassador’s face.  “I’m going to ask Mackenzie to be my wife.”  The words were spilling out now, faster than he intended.  “I know that tradition dictates that I should be asking you for her hand, but I can’t imagine a way to anger Mac faster than asking your permission to marry her.  So, I’d like your blessing, sir, but I don’t think I’m going to ask for your permission.”

Will took a deep breath, and the ambassador finally spoke.

“Got all of that drivel out of your system, then?”  Will stared, open-mouthed, at the man driving the car.  “You’ll need some polish on that speech of yours when you ask her, you know.  Mackenzie’s been waiting a long time for you.”

“Y-yes, sir.  I’m working on it.”  Will blinked a few times, caught off guard by being on this end of the conversational parry.  He usually ran the table in an exchange like this; feeling like he was on his heels was disconcerting.

“Good.  You’re going to ask her tonight?”

“I plan to, yes.”  Will watched as the ambassador nodded and pursed his lips.

“We’ll need dinner reservations, then.”  With some (to Will’s thinking) fancy button-pushing on the steering wheel, the sound of ringing filled the car.

“’Allo?”

“Henri?  Ambassador McHale.  I besoin d'une réservation pour ce soir.”

Will frowned.  _Fucking French.  I don’t know enough French to find a beer in a bar._

“Nous sommes complètement réservés, monsieur.  Est-ce que demain?”

“Absolutely not!”  The ambassador’s tone was sharp.  “Il doit être ce soir.”

“I’ll have a table for 8:30, sir.  Pour combien?”

“Quatre. Merci, Henri.”  The ambassador ended the call.  “We’ve got dinner.”

“Thank you, sir.”  Will furrowed his brow slightly.

“Now son, there’s no need to frown.  You don’t have the connections here that you have at home.  I’m certain you could accomplish the same results, but let’s not quibble about the time saved in my phone call versus your call home, their call back here, and twelve assistants looking for a reservation from across the ocean.”

“Pragmatic, I guess.”  _Ego?  Is that what’s showing right now?_

“Good.  Now you go on inside and take care of your business.  I’ll go on down the road and scare up a brandy.”

Will entered the jewelry store still mildly shell-shocked.

“Good afternoon.  May I help you?”

Will looked up, suddenly frozen as the significance of the moment struck him.  An older man, short and dressed very much like Will expected a jeweler in a traditional English shop to be dressed, stood expectantly before him.

“Yes.  Ineedtobuyaring.”

“Pardon me?”

Will focused on taking several deep breaths.

“I would like to buy a ring.”

“I’m Howard.”  The man extended his hand to Will and shook it warmly.  “I’m certain that we’ll have just what you need.”

 

 

Mackenzie stretched, pushing the kinks from her muscles and reaching for Will.  Her fingers skimmed cold sheets, but she opened her eyes only at a crinkling sound as her hand skated over the pillow.

                _Be back soon.  Never doubt how much I love you, M.  Yours always, W_

Mac smiled as she read the note once and then again, tugged on her robe, and made her way down to the kitchen.

“Hi, Mum,” Mac said, taking a seat at the table and helping herself to a cookie from the plate.  “These biscuits are a bit stale.”

“They were fresh this morning.”  Mac’s mother didn’t turn from the cutting board or the onion she was dicing.  Mac’s eyebrows climbed.

“Something to say, Mum?”

“No, dear.  But, it’s after noon, and this is the first that you’ve left your room.  Wouldn’t it have been more appropriate to dress and have your talk in the study like a civilized woman?”

“I’m American, Mum.  We don’t believe in appropriateness.”

Her mother smiled in spite of herself and crossed the kitchen to kiss her daughter’s cheek.

“Will seemed to indicate that you had resolved your differences.”

“I don’t think there were differences, per se.  I showed a startling lack of faith in Will, and he came out here to remind me that our relationship isn’t subject to the whims of Nina Howard or anyone else, for that matter.”

“Everything is alright, then?”

“Everything will be fine.”  Mac accepted the tea that her mother set in front of her with a smile and a squeeze of her mother’s hand.  “Where is Will, anyway?  He left a note saying he’d be back but not at all where he was going.”

“I really couldn’t say, Mac.  Will asked if he might borrow a car, and your father thought it best to drive him rather than send the boy out in the snow on a side of the road that America staunchly refuses to use.”

“They’ve gone together?”  Mac’s surprise was evident on her face and in her voice.

“I’m certain it’s nothing to work yourself up about, darling.”

“I’m not worked up.  I just know how Daddy can be.”

“And how, little girl, exactly, can I be?”  The ambassador stepped into the kitchen, startling both his wife and his daughter.

“You’re back!” Mackenzie exclaimed, ignoring her father’s question.  “Where’s Will?”

“He’s just gone upstairs.  He’ll be right down, certainly.”  He stopped to lightly kiss his wife’s cheek.  “Now, I think I’ve got a pretty smashing plan for the evening.  Who’d like to hear it?”

“Alright dear.  Fire when ready.”  Mac’s mother shot Mackenzie a look that clearly said ‘if it’s awful, we’ll do something else.’

“Well, while William was attending to business in town, I finagled up a table for 8:30 pm at Henri’s.”

“And just how did you manage that, then?  They’ve been booked up for weeks.”

The ambassador smiled smugly at his wife.

“That, darling wife, will remain my secret.  If you learn all of my tricks, I’ll never be able to surprise you.”

“I am, in fact, surprised.  Quite right in your assessment.  Smashing.”

“On from dinner, we can either pop into that little studio to hear some jazz, or we can dance in the New Year at the club.”

“Lovely, dad, really.”  Mackenzie grinned widely.  “I’ll need to ring ‘round to the cousins to find a gown.”  As she mentally ticked through the list of seemingly-sized relatives, a frown creased her brow.  “What about Will?  I don’t see him fitting one of your tuxes, Dad.”

“Ah, I think you’ll be very impressed, honey,” Will said, making his own entrance into the kitchen.  “I’ve already borrowed a tux from a shop in town.”

“How very resourceful, William.  Well done, indeed.”

“I can’t take the credit for that, ma’am.  Your husband filled me in on the plan, and I had ample opportunity to find suitable garb.”

“Mackenzie, darling,” Mac’s mother began with a mischievous smirk, “Will is so sensible and appropriate.  Why can’t you be more like him?”

“Credit where credit is due again, I’m afraid.”  Will stepped in, placed his hands on Mac’s shoulders, and squeezed gently.  “I learned most of my appropriateness from your daughter.  Not a lot of formal occasions in Nebraska.  On the whole, tuxedos there are thin on the ground.”

Mackenzie squeezed one of Will’s hands.  _I guess I don’t need to defend myself with Will here to do it for me._

“And with that, Mum,” Mac stuck her tongue out at her mother, “I’m going to see about a dress.”

“Wait!”  The ambassador stopped his daughter and directed his question to the women in the room.  “Are we going dancing or to hear that jazz combo?  I’ll need to finish making our arrangements.”

“Let’s head off to hear the music, and if the kids want to go dancing later, they’re more than welcome to do so.  We’ll be lucky to make it to midnight, dear.”  Mackenzie’s mother spoke with finality, and no one questioned her.  “Mackenzie, let me help you make those calls.  We’ll find a dress in no time.”

Mac and her mother let the kitchen arm in arm, planning both of their ensembles for the evening.

“Will she have any problems finding a dress?”  Will directed the question at the ambassador.

“None at all.  The women in this family have a unique talent for always having the right dress to wear.”

Will nodded, accepting the statement at face-value.  A few minutes later, as the men sat in the study in companionable silence with scotch in hand, Mac came purposefully into the room.

“Billy, want to come along for a ride?  I’m going to pick up a dress.”

“From where?” her father queried.

“That little shop next to the jeweler where you got Mum’s ring.  They’ve got something gorgeous that they are willing to loan me for the evening.”  She paused to take a dainty sip from Will’s drink. “Whadya say, McAvoy?  Up for another trip to town?”

“Anyplace you say, Mac.”

Mac stopped and smiled widely at Will.  _He really means that._   One long sip emptied Will’s glass, and he set it on the bar cart.

“Thank you for the drink, sir.”

“Anytime, William.  Drive safely, kids.”

 

As Mac and Will pulled away from the house, she began to speak at the same time that Will did.

“Where—“

“I’ve never—“

They laughed lightly.

“You first.  You’ve never what, Will?”

“Never been called a kid as often as when I’m around your family.”

“They don’t mean anything malicious by it, Billy.  They just still see me, and by extension you, as kids that need to be looked out for.  It’s out of affection.  I promise.”

“You misunderstand, Mac.  I’m not complaining.  It’s nice that they feel they way about you, and if it spills over to me, all the better.”

“They love you, Will,” she reached for his hand.  “They always have.”

“Even though I’m sleeping with their daughter?”

“Last time they found a man in my room, I had to peel them off the ceiling.  They could not have been any calmer this morning.  I’m pretty certain you’ve won them over.”

“I’m glad.  I don’t know what would happen if your family disapproved of me.”

“It’s convenient, I’ll grant you, but it wouldn’t change anything for us.  I love you, even if it took me two years in an Afghani cave to figure it out.  Nothing will ever change that for me.”

_Just you wait ‘til this evening.  Once I slip that ring on your finger, you’ll never doubt that I feel the same way, ever._ Will cleared his throat, battling back the emotion.  _Change the subject.  Change the subject._   Subconsciously, he patted the breast pocket of the jacket he was wearing.  The weight of the ring there faintly registered in his mind.

“I don’t know what kind of scotch your father drinks, but I’ve got to tell you, it’s got something.”

“It’s aged in port barrels,” Mac answered without missing a beat.  “Where did you run off to earlier?  Before the scotch, I mean.”

“I’ll take ‘completely different conversational paths’ for $200, Alex.”

Mac chortled.  “I meant to ask before,” she said, mock pout playing on her lips.

“I needed a tux,” Will said carefully, watching as Mac frowned.

“That’s not why you went out.  That tuxedo was a happy coincidence.  At least that how you and Dad made it seem.”

“I needed to take care of something, Mac.  Can we just leave it at that?”  Will waged an internal battle with himself.  _Just lie.  She’ll understand later._ He shook his head, almost imperceptibly.  _The deal is honesty.  Always.  End of statement._

Mac offered Will a look that was mildly hurt and full of skepticism.

“Alright, Billy.  We can leave it at that.”

Before he could respond, the area around him became familiar, and he did a double take as the car stopped in front of the jewelry store that he had visited earlier in the day.

“THIS is where your father bought your mother’s ring?”

“Sure.  Why?”

“No reason.  Just surprised he didn’t have some crown jewels from some ancient monarch to give her.”  

“My parents were never as traditional as that.”  She laughed gently.  “Though, you’d never know that now.”

For a moment, they both sat, silently lost in their own thoughts.  Will smiled to himself, ridiculously proud of his earlier choice.   _The same shop, huh?_

“We’d better get you that dress, Mac,” Will said finally.  “Your parents want us ready with enough time for a cocktail before dinner.”

_He’s completely at ease here, with my family, on their turf._ Mac smiled at him and impulsively leaned over for a long kiss.

“I love you, William Duncan McAvoy.”  Will looked taken aback.

“What brought that on?”  He wrinkled his nose and kissed her again.  “Not that I’m complaining, mind you.”

“You’ve come all this way.  For me. And then you’ve gone and let yourself be swept into New Year’s Eve plans with my parents.  All with a smile.”

“Mackenzie, I love you.  And your parents make me feel like a teenager again, but they’re enjoyable people.  I love seeing you happy, and you’re happy right now.”

“Mmm,” she agreed.  “I am.”  With that, she got out of the car.  “Now, the dress.”

Will got out of the car, noting not for the first time how odd it was for him to be a passenger on that side of the car.  _You can take the boy out of Nebraska…_   He chuckled to himself and put a hand on the small of Mackenzie’s back to steer her toward the dress shop.  He felt this stomach drop when the door of the jewelry shopped opened, and Howard stepped out.

“Mr. McAvoy!  I didn’t expect to see you again, sir, and certainly not so soon!  What can I do for you?  Did she not like it?  Didn’t it fit?”

Will felt Mackenzie stiffen beside him.  And he heard the word tumble from his own lips without his permission.

“Fuck.”

“Billy?”

Howard paled visibly and stammered an apology over and over as he retreated into his shop.  Mackenzie stared intently up at him.

_Looks like it’s now or never._

“Mackenzie, I need to ask you something.”  He dropped to one knee, ignoring the protest that his body made.

“Billy…” Mac’s eyes were impossibly wide, and her hands dropped to Will’s shoulders as he hit the ground in front of her.

“I love you.  On some level, I think I’ve always known that it would be you.”  He paused to reach into his jacket pocket.  “Now that we’re in this together, I don’t ever want to be without you.”  Finally, his fingers closed around the ring, and he produced it from his pocket.  “Mackenzie, I want to spend the rest of my life putting you first, making sure that you understand how amazing you are, and loving you in the best ways that I can.”  He stared hard at the ring, unable to meet her eyes.  This wasn’t the speech he had been writing.  There was no music; the moment wasn’t as he had planned, but his heart was here, in his hand, manifested in the ring.  He was offering it to her, and he was terrified that she wouldn’t accept it.  “Will you be my wife, Mackenzie?  Will you marry me?”

“Will,” her voice was a shaking whisper.  He was staring at the ring he was holding as though the fate of the world rested within the circle; her voice failed to bring his eyes to meet hers.  “Billy,” she tried again, her tears spilling over.  His raise tilted up, and tears shone in his eyes, mirroring hers.  “Oh Billy,” she sighed, bending to kiss him tenderly.  “Of course I’ll marry you.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes,” she laughed through her tears and presented her hand to him.  As he slid the ring onto her finger, she said it again.  “I’ve never been so sure of anything.”

“Thank god,” he exhaled, carefully getting to his feet.

Mackenzie threw her arms around his neck and peppered Will’s face with short kisses.  After a moment, his lips caught hers, and he poured everything he was feeling into the kiss.  Minutes later, they were interrupted by the sound of a car going by, honking.  Their lips pulled back, but their foreheads rested against each other.

“Billy, why now?”

“I don’t ever want you, ever, to wonder about us.  Whatever life throws in our direction, we face it together.  You’re my priority, Mackenzie, my only priority.”

“Together,” she repeated.  Mackenzie took a step back, out of Will’s arms, and held her hand out to examine the ring now settled on her finger.  Her breath caught in her throat.  “Oh, Will.  It’s beautiful.”

“You like it?”

“I love it.”

The clock in the square a few blocks over chimed the hour.

“Shit.”  Mac pulled Will’s wrist close to her eyes to check the time.  “We’ve got to get that damn dress if we’re going to go out with my parents tonight.”

“You need glasses.”  Will followed her as she turned toward the dress shop,

“Why?  I just wear yours when I need them.”  She stopped short.  “Do my parents know?”

“Your father drove me into town earlier.  I told him what I planned to do.  He had some doubts about my verbosity, but seemed, otherwise, supportive.  I feel sure he told your mother as soon as we left the house.”  He cast a mildly disgusted look at the jewelry shop door.  “I think they’ll be surprised when you come back with a dress and a ring, though.  I had planned on doing this later tonight.”

“This is perfect, Will.  A little bit off the cuff and very, very real.  Just like us.”

He reached forward and squeezed her arm.

“Dress.  Must get that dress before we run out of time.”  _This damn dress…_  He couldn't even manage real gruffness in his mind; everything was just _right_.

 

At five minutes past the appointed time, Mackenzie descended the stairs from the bedroom and made her way into the formal parlor, reserved mainly for holidays and visits from other dignitaries.  Will paused mid-sentence as she entered the room.

“Mackenzie,” he breathed out her name reverently.  “You’re stunning.”

“Billy,” she said, blushing, “you’ve seen me in god-knows-how-many gowns in the last month.  Surely, you’re getting used to it by now?”

Will, completely oblivious to Mac’s parents in the room, crossed the floor to take her in his arms.

“You haven’t stopped taking my breath away, yet.”

Mac’s mother gently cleared her throat.

“Mac, darling, you do cut quite the figure in that gown.”  She smiled as the couple put an acceptable amount of space between their bodies.  “Can I pour you a drink?”

“Just a short one, Mum.”  She cast an appreciative eye over Will’s well-fitted tuxedo and made a mental note to mention it later.  “I know I’m a few minutes late.”

“Well, judging by the look on your fiancé’s face,” her father said with a wide grin, “I’d say those extra minutes were well worth your tardiness.”

“Will’s always saying things like that, Daddy.  The five minutes didn’t make any difference, whatsoever.”  Mackenzie couldn’t help her mild embarrassment at the attention.

Will stepped closer and allowed his mouth to come within a hairsbreadth of Mackenzie’s ear.  When he spoke, his voice was deep and gravelly, meant only for her.

“I look at you like this, say these things to you, because you’re perfect to me, Mackenzie.  You always have been.”

With blessed English decorum, Mackenzie’s parents busied themselves with making a drink for their daughter.  Mac felt as though her heart had actually skipped a beat.

“You mean that.  Don’t you?” she asked, almost in a whisper.

“With all my heart.”  He tipped her chin up and looked into her eyes, trying to speak the entire contents of his hear with a single look.  “Now go get your drink.  We’ve got places to go and music to hear.”

Mac smiled and crossed the room to accept the drink her mother was holding out to her.

“He looks at you the way your father looks at me, dear.”  The ambassador and his wife shared an intimate smile.  “Like you’re the only woman in the world.”

 Mackenzie laughed, an impossible joy filling her.  _Hands down, best New Year’s Eve, ever._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y’all, I went round and round on how the proposal should go… I wrote 6 different versions, including several that closely mirrored the canon proposal. And then it occurred to me… this proposal CAN’T be like that proposal. There’s not the bitterness or the hurt or the betrayal. Once I had that realization, this came so much easier! Did you like it???
> 
> Was it TOO fluffy? I almost feel like it was, but I couldn't stop it, once it started.
> 
> I love hearing from all of you, always!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, friends... To counteract the fluff of the last chapter, I offer you Chapter 15-- very little fluff.
> 
> Beware: Nina Howard makes an appearance; boy oh boy, do we hate her.

Chapter 15

The rundown meeting was well underway, and Will’s attitude was wearing thin on Mackenzie’s patience.  They had been back from England for almost a week, and while things at home seemed fine, the tension at work was mounting.  Back and forth across the room, Will and Don hurled mildly insulting quips at each other.   Mackenzie cast a glance of utter annoyance across the table. 

"Apologize."

"Sorry, Mac," Will said, sounding not the least bit sorry for his outburst.

"To Don!" she said, frustration coloring her tone.

"I'm over it," Don said, worrying the cap of his pen between his teeth and staring at his rundown sheet.

"I swear to god, if you two don't get it together today, I'm going to turn both of your jobs over to interns, and you can both go work for Fox.  This is our first real show after the holidays, and I won’t have you two idiots mucking it up."

Both men mumbled their apologies, and the rest of the meeting progressed without incident.  Will was the first person out of the conference room when Mackenzie called the meeting to a close, and she watched him stride purposefully to the elevators with a slight frown.

“Trouble in paradise?” Sloan asked, sticking her head into the now nearly deserted conference room.

“I—I don’t know.”  Mac shrugged lightly.  “At home, everything is lovely.  But the moment we get into the car in the morning, it’s like a switch flips.  I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Does it have anything to do with the tabloid stories?”

Mac’s eyes narrowed.

“What tabloid stories?”

 

Will entered the board room feeling as though the executioner’s ax hung over his head.  The room was lit dimly, which didn’t intimidate Will as much as it used to.  The lighting did, however, give him a clue as to how seriously the people in the room were taking this meeting.   _Fuck._   He scanned the room quickly:  Leona, Reese, Charlie- looking positively glum, and the new VP of HR.  With a resigned sigh, Will took a seat next to Charlie, at the far end of the table from the rest of the group.

“Will, this is a fucking PR nightmare.”

“I know, Reese.”  Will sat up straighter.  “You know none of it is true, right?  It’s all a fucking lie.”

“How about the bit that describes a ring that seems to have taken up residence on a finger on her left hand?”  Leona smirked at him, but Will didn’t sense amusement or goodwill.

“That bit is true,” Will responded.  “We got engaged while we were in England.”

“Jesus, Will.  We talked about this.  Remember?”  Leona stood and began to pace, agitation evident.  Her nervous energy alarmed Will.  “We stood in Charlie’s office and said that it couldn’t affect the network.”

“What are you saying, Leona?”

“It’s not working, Mr. McAvoy.  Her public persona is pretty dinged up from these stories,” the HR man began.   _What the fuck is his name?_

“The stories AREN’T TRUE!” Will roared.  Charlie’s hand on his arm quieted him, and the man continued.

“We’re having to do damage control.  Daily.”

“I’m sorry, Mr.---  Shit.  What was your name?”

“Geary.  Wyatt Geary.”

“Right, Mr. Geary.  Isn’t the ‘damage control’ the PR department’s issue?”  Will could have slapped himself for the air quotes that he used.   _Mackenzie would have enjoyed them._

“It is, in fact,” Reese said.  “That’s why I’m here.”

“I’m here to discuss the legal issues that are raised by your and Miss McHale’s continued and very public relationship.”

“Public?  My ex-wife is pedaling stories to any rag that will print them.  Mac and I aren’t splashing across red carpet events.  We’re about as private as it gets until Nina gets involved.”

“It presents a problem for us, Mr. McAvoy.  If we’re aware of your relationship and do nothing to amend the reporting structure, what stops an associate producer from dating an intern?  It’s a bad precedent.  We’ve got to make some sort of a change.”

“Horseshit.”  Charlie entered the conversation and slammed his hands down on the table.  “What’s the bottom line, Leona?”

“It’s expensive, Charlie, cleaning up these messes.  If he can’t contain Nina Howard any better than this, Mackenzie will have to be moved.”

“We’re putting out the best news on TV,” Will muttered under his breath, anger seething in him.

“Only because everyone else is busy reporting on you,” Reese tossed back.

“Enough.  That’s enough.  We’ll get Nina reigned in.”  Charlie stood and looked at Leona.  “Done?”

“Charlie, we won’t have this conversation again.  I’ll just take care of it.”  Leona stared hard at Charlie, her eyes imploring him to hear her.  “Am I understood?”

Charlie nodded once and moved toward the door.  When he reached it and looked back, Will was still sitting.

“Will.”

“Huh?  Oh, sure.  Yeah.”  Will rose and took two steps toward the door before turning back.  “Leona.  Reese.”  He nodded in their direction and followed Charlie into the corridor.

“Seems like every time you turn around, someone named Howard is getting in your way.”  Charlie pressed the elevator call button with some intensity.  “Between your proposal, these damn tabloid stories, and a stack of messages from Anna Howard-something-or-other, I think maybe we should have the name embargoed.”

“What the fuck does Anna want?”

“I’m sure to raise some sort of hell about you and your impending nuptials and what it looks like to people outside of our newsroom.” Will offered Charlie a pained expression.  “Do something about it, Will.  I can only protect you two for so long.”

“Yeah.”

“How much longer do you think you can keep this from her?”

Will prickled at the accusation.

“I’m not keeping it from her.  I’m just not actively involving her.  She doesn’t need this shit on her plate.”

Will shrugged, left Charlie on his floor, and headed back to his own office.  On the way down, he fired off an email to his attorney.

_I need every single paper you’ve got in my divorce file.  The notes, any voice memos, all of it.  ASAP.  Did she want something that we didn’t want to give?  I’ll also take any thoughts you’ve got on what the hell is going on._

_-Will_

The response came quickly:  a messenger had been dispatched to bring the files right over.   _For the money I pay him, it better come quickly._   While he was waiting for the messenger, Will gave final approval to his copy.  When the box of files arrived, Will gave the handwritten note from his attorney a cursory glance.

_Will, you gave her everything she asked for, even past what was required of your_   _prenup.  Good luck. Godspeed._

“Fuck.”  He directed the word to the box of papers in front of him.  He began to read, page by page, almost certain that he wouldn’t find any keys to solving his current problems in them, but he was lacking better options.  Page after page, folder by folder, the box grew emptier, and the piles around Will grew.   _Nothing._   Finally, when he reached in for another file, he hit bottom.   _Nothing left._   He carded his fingers in his hair and stared blankly at the wall, searching for any answer.  With a heavy sigh, he reached for his phone and dialed.

“Will.”  She sounded tired, resigned almost.

“Nina,” he was taken aback by her tone, “I don’t understand.”  He waited, and when she didn’t speak, he continued.  “Why?  Why are you driving so hard on this?”  His voice sounded gentler than he felt; the exhaustion of hours of reading and reliving weighed on him.  He waited again for her response.  The sound of a light sniffle caught him even more off guard than her tone had when she had greeted him.  “Nina?  Are you alright?”

“He left me, Will,” she said, voice breaking.  “He wasn’t willing to fight for me, either.  Now, I’m having this baby, alone.”  She paused to blow her nose, politely away from the phone.  “And you’re riding into battle for her, again.  Why couldn’t you fight for me like that?”

“You wouldn’t have wanted me to.  You hated my protective instincts.  It made you crazy that I wanted to take care of you.”  He spoke carefully but with earnest honesty.  “We didn’t work, Nina.  We answered the wrong questions for each other.  It was the wrong solution to what we really needed.  You weren’t happy with me.”  He made the decision not to touch her statement about being left.

“I know.”  The resignation in her tone would have been heartbreaking if it wasn’t for the simmering anger that Will was still feeling toward her.

“Nina, you’ve got to leave Mackenzie alone.  She’s not why you and I didn’t work.  They’re talking about moving her.”   _Do you have any idea what that would do to my show?  To my life?_ “Please, Nina.  I’m laying it all on the table here.  Please, just let it be.  Let us be.”

“Do you have any idea how hard it is to see you engaged to that  _child_?”

“It. Is. Not. Her. Fault.”  Will hit every word with intensity.  “I don’t know how else to phrase it.  What else can I do?  Do you need more money?  Tell me, Nina, and I will do it.”

“I don’t need your money, Will.”

“Then what?  What’s it going to take to get you out of the fake-stories-about-Mackenzie-McHale business?”

“They’re not as fake as you make them out to be.  If I were you, I’d chat with your fiancé about what happened while she was overseas.  Just to set the record straight.”

“Goddammit, Nina!”  Will’s patience was fraying, and he knew he needed to end the conversation before he lost his temper.  “It wouldn’t matter if they were all true.  I love her.  And you’ve got to lay off.”

“This.  This right here is the problem.  If you had put half the effort into our marriage that you put into this fight about  _her_ , we’d still be married.”

“And you’d still have a string of lovers waiting in the wings.  Mackenzie wasn’t what was wrong with our marriage.  We were.  I won’t ask you again to leave her alone.  The next call comes from my attorney.”

He disconnected without another word and without giving her a chance to respond.  With confident keystrokes, Will logged into the online law library to which he maintained a membership.   _Libel laws in California have got to be similar to libel laws here, right?_   The research drew him in, and when the intern knocked on his door to alert him of the 10-minute call, he had to scramble to dress and be at his desk.  Mackenzie, blessedly, refrained from making any comment about his tardiness, and the show went off without a hitch.

“See you at home later, Billy?”  Mac asked over the headset after they were clear.  He looked into the camera, knowing she could see him, and nodded once.  She shed her headset and left the control room.

 

 

Mackenzie came out of the elevator and was surprised to find a dark apartment.  Will had gone home right after the show, and she had gone to meet Sloan for a drink.

“Will?” she called to the darkness.

Her brow furrowed, and she set her bag down.  As she went deeper into the space, she caught the faint tones of Van Morrison coming from the balcony.

“Hey honey,” she said, kicking off her shoes, climbing onto the chaise beside him, and pulling his blanket to cover her too.  She took a drag of his cigarette and then kissed him, long and slow.  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked, taking his scotch glass from his hand, helping herself to a long sip. 

“About what?” he said, breaking his silence for the first time since leaving the studio.

“Whatever has you out here brooding.”

“No, I don’t want to talk about it.”  His tone was dark, challenging almost.   _Push me, Mackenzie.  I’m geared up to go 15 rounds._

“Alright, Billy.  We won’t talk about it.  We’ll just sit here, smoking and drinking, hating the world.”  She tilted her face up and kissed his jawline before taking another sip of his scotch.

“Get your own drink, Mackenzie,” he growled.  A genuine laugh escaped her lips.

“The bottle is right here.  How about I just share yours?”  The tension was radiating off Will in waves, and Mackenzie had a sudden moment of doubt about the way she was approaching him in that moment.

“Just don’t let the glass sit empty.”

Mackenzie smiled.   _The first concession._   Without a word, she tipped the bottle to refill his glass.

“See how helpful I can be?”  She furrowed her own eyebrows as she watched an errant eyebrow of Will’s move in the breeze.  Without thinking about the action, she reached up and snatched the hair from his brow.

“Goddammit, woman!”  The arm that wasn’t pinned under Mackenzie flew to cover the spot on his face.  “What the fuck are you doing?”

“I’m sorry, Billy, really!  I wasn’t thinking.”  She sat up just enough to be able to look him in the eye.  “You had an old man eyebrow.”  She stared at him for a moment longer before settling back down beside him.  “And don’t call me ‘woman’.”  Another sip of his drink.  “Unless we’re in Nebraska.”

At that, Will started to chuckle.  It grew and grew until tears were streaming down his cheeks.  The tension drained from him and the arm that had been pinned beneath Mackenzie slid up and caressed her hip, anchoring her close to him.  As the laughter died down, he turned and caught the side of her face with a tender kiss.

“You know, don’t you?”

“About the stories?  Sloan told me today.”  She sipped his drink.  “You want to tell me why I had to hear about it from her?”

“I didn’t want you to get mired down in it.  It’s just false, libelous nonsense.  Just because my past is problematic…” he stopped.  His fingers closed around hers, and he tipped the glass to his own lips without freeing hers from gripping it.  “I’m sorry.  I probably should have told you.”

“Together, Billy.  Remember?  That’s how we’re doing this.”  He nodded, and she relaxed against him again.   _Better tell him now._   “Her sources must be big names, though.”

“What do you mean?”

“There’s only about 10 people between D.C. and me who should know any of that.”

“It’s true?”

“A fair bit of it,” she said, quietly.  “Enough that you wouldn’t be founded in calling it ‘libelous’.”

“Jesus, Mackenzie.  During your first assignment?”

“And some when I was there recently.”  His arm tightened around her, crushing her to him.  “Billy, it’s okay.  I’m fine.”

“How could they use you like that?”

“I was doing my part for the country.  It wasn’t… they didn’t use me, Will.”  She sat up, fighting to break his grip on her.  “I chose to accept the assignment.  I chose it.”

“How much of it is true?”

Mackenzie flinched at the tone of Will’s voice.  His gritted teeth betrayed his emotion.  She had spent the time with Sloan poring over the tabloid stories, gathering the information that Will would have seen, preparing herself for this conversation.

“Most of it is true.”

Will sighed deeply.  “Alright.  Which parts aren’t true, then, Mackenzie?”  She inhaled, readying her response, but Will continued.  “No prevarication.  Give it to me straight.”

“I acted as a liaison between local clan leaders and the CIA under the guise of reporting stories.  And I did!  I reported some Peabody award-winning stories, Will, stories that I would never have had access to without compromising and taking assignments from them.  But the journalism wasn’t their main purpose in letting me conduct most of those interviews.  I passed information back and forth.  The clan leaders were on our side.  There wasn’t any real danger, mostly.  To the CIA, I was an optic.  To the clan leaders, I was what they used to save face.  Most of my audio men were CIA.”  She chuckled.  “Getting consistent levels was a nightmare.”  She took another sip of the scotch, letting it warm her throat.  Will took the glass and emptied it.  At her raised eyebrow, he refilled it.  “There were a couple of close calls.”   _You don’t want to hear about this, Billy.  You’ll never look at me the same way._ She waited; Will’s silence urged her to continue.  “You really want to hear this?”

“I guarantee you that I’ve created quite a picture in my head using Nina’s words.  I think I’d rather have the facts and not her sensationalized version.”

“Once, a long time ago, the first time I was overseas, the second assignment I accepted for them, the information that had been given to me wasn’t entirely accurate.  The man I was meeting threw my cameraman and the agent-cum-audio-man out, barred the door.  He had ideas about our time together, ideas that didn't include an interview.  I tried to talk my way out of it, but he didn’t want to take no for an answer.  I could hear my team doing battle with a door that was blast-worthy, and I knew I was on my own.  When he reached to touch my cheek, I slapped his hand away.  He flew off the handle.  His eyes, Jesus, they were wild.  I saw the glint of the steel knife edge, that’s what I remember, seeing the knife in his hand.  I didn’t even realize it was there until the light hit it just right.  It all seems like a bad nightmare now.  He was twice my size.  There’s no reason that I was able to wrestle the knife away, save adrenaline and sheer will to live.  I’m certain that I broke his wrist, trying to get the knife from him.”  Mackenzie knew she was sanitizing the story for Will, downplaying her panic, the utter terror that had gripped her for months after.  She was leaving out the eyes that had haunted her dreams for years, rendering her unable to share a bed with any man, until Will.   _Better just the facts, though._ “And then, as we struggled for the knife, I stumbled backward over a chair, and he toppled on top of me.  He fell onto the knife, but I gave it an extra thrust.  I remember scrambling out from under him, clawing my way backward, toward the door, in complete shock.  By the time I collected myself enough to unlock the door and let my team in, he was dead.”   _There.  Now, he knows._ “I killed him.  Nina got that right.  The week of captivity was nonsense.  Sensationalistic nonsense.  The entire event lasted an hour.”  Mackenzie gasped as a thought crashed into her mind for the first time since she had heard the stories.  “Oh god, Billy.  I’ll never be able to go back.  I’d be a danger to everyone.  And the men who worked with me… their covers are blown.”  Her words trailed off as her thoughts spiraled to near panic.

“Honey, breathe.”  His hands stroked her hair, incredibly gently.  “I guarantee you that those men are safe.  They would never have been left exposed once Nina started hinting around you and your stories.  She didn’t come out with it all at once.”  She nodded and blinked a few times.  The rational part of her brain knew he was right; the emotional part wanted to log into the untraceable email address that she used only for emergencies to check on those she had met while overseas.  “Are you okay?”

Confusion clouded her features.  “Am I okay?”

“Yes, Mackenzie.  Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, Billy.  All of that was years ago.  It’s nothing more than a bad dream now.”  She paused, carefully weighing her words.  “Can you stand to look at me?”  Will stared at her, slack-jawed.  “I killed a man, Will.”

Will pulled Mackenzie into his arms, holding her as close as he could.  He breathed in the scent of her hair, memorized for the thousandth time the feel of her body pressed to his.

“Mackenzie, you did what you had to do to survive.  And after what can only be described as a horrific situation, you continued to put yourself in harm’s way for the good of your country.  I’ve never been more impressed with you or bowled over by your strength that I am in this moment.”

Mackenzie pulled back and looked into Will’s eyes.  Seeing the honesty there that she had heard in his words, she laughed through her tears.

“Oh, Billy!  You’re sure?”

“Of you?  Always.”

“What are we going to do about Nina?”

“That, Mackenzie Morgan McHale, is a problem for tomorrow.”  He rose, tugged her to her feet, and led her to bed.   _Tomorrow, we'll deal with Nina.  Tonight, I'll hold her close, make her feel safe, and drive all of the old memories from her mind._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, dears?
> 
> You know how much I love to hear from y'all! Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions for future chapters?
> 
> Thanks for reading!!! (I think you're all really wonderful!)


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all... I have had the WORST writer's block. So, I cleared the pipes (no pun intended) with a little smut.
> 
> And then the ideas and the words came... two more chapters are half written and should be up in the next two weeks.
> 
> Hope you're still here.

Chapter 16

“I was NOT a spy.”

“You so WERE.”  Maggie spoke emphatically, and all the heads around the table nodded in agreement.

It hadn’t taken long for word to spread around the office that Mackenzie had finally learned of the tabloid pieces.  The rundown meeting, a meeting which was quickly becoming Mac’s least favorite time of the day, had turned into another conversation about the stories and about Mac’s past.

“I was not a spy.  I was a liaison.  There’s a huge difference.”  Mac took a deep breath, willing herself to maintain her patience.  “I was never on the government’s payroll.  My involvement was purely voluntary, and I took each assignment on spec.”

“Sounds like being a spy to me,” Martin mumbled.

Mackenzie crashed both hands flat onto the top of the table with an exasperated groan.

“For the last, and I do mean last, time, I was not a spy.  I did what I could do to assist our intelligence forces on the ground while I was with them.  I always used my real name.  I was never undercover.  Every person I met with contributed in some way to a story.”  She sat, staring down her team.  “Two Peabody awards.  They don’t give those to spies.”  She paused for a beat.  “I only did what anyone would do in my position.”  Her voice was soft now.  “We won’t discuss it again.  Is that very clear?”  She was given murmured assent and nods from around the table. 

“Alright, Mac.  It’s finished.”  Jim spoke for the group.  He hadn’t meant to push her so far, and his tone betrayed his contrition.

“I’m going to meet with graphics.  We’ll pick this up in an hour.”  Mac rose to exit the conference room.  “I’d very much like to see a rough rundown at that point.”

As the conference room door closed behind her, Mac quickly tapped out a text to Joey, postponing their meeting until later in the day.  She glanced around, making sure that there weren’t eyes on her and slipped unnoticed into Will’s office, flipping the lock behind her.  Will looked up, surprised.

“Hey,” he said with a smile.

“Hi,” she responded, her back to him.  She could feel him frown from the across the room as she shut the blinds around his office.

“What’s going on, Mac?”  He heard her shoes drop in front of his desk as he spoke.

“When’s your next meeting?”

“Not for an hour or so, I think.”  He consulted his calendar.  “Yeah.  My next meeting is in an hour.  With you and Sloan.”

Mackenzie double checked the door to be sure it was properly latched.  “Sloan’s stuck in a thing uptown.  That meeting’s been canceled.”  She casually flicked the first two buttons of her shirt open.

“Mackenzie,” there was a warning tone in his voice.  “What the fuck is going on?”

“I need to be distracted.”  She pulled her hair up on top of her head and secured it with a band from around her wrist.  _Hopefully, it will be salvageable later._ “Distract me, Billy.”

“Here?”  He swallowed a lump in his throat and came around from behind the desk, closing on Mac.  “In the middle of the day?”  Mac nodded, biting her lip in mild embarrassment; the emotion threatening to overwhelm her was momentarily battled back by her own insecurities.  Her eyes met Will’s, and she could feel his gaze search her.  “You okay?”  His arms slid around her waist, pulling her close.

“Please, Billy,” she whispered.  “I don’t want to talk.”

Will tipped her chin up and gently brushed a kiss across Mackenzie’s lips.  A sound that Will almost classified as mewling escaped her parted lips.  Another soft kiss and Mackenzie’s eyes fluttered shut.

“You’re sure?”

“Please,” she whispered.  Will internally questioned Mac’s motives, but knew better than to press any further.  His arms tightened around Mackenzie.  She immediately relaxed into him, relief flooding through her at the acquiescence that his gesture conveyed.  “I want to feel this, Will.”

Will raised an eyebrow that Mackenzie couldn’t see for just a moment before seizing her bottom lip between his teeth and biting gently.  Mac exhaled hard and tightened her fingers on his shoulders.  He tugged on her lip once more before crashing his lips flush with hers and invading her mouth with his tongue.  Mackenzie returned the kiss with bruising intensity, driving all thought of anything but this moment from Will’s mind.

“Jesus, Mackenzie,” he whispered against her skin as his mouth moved to her collarbone.  His teeth grazed the skin there, and Mac waivered, struggling to stay on her feet.  Both of Will’s hands cupped her backside, and he urged Mackenzie off her feet.  With no hesitation, Mac wrapped her legs around Will’s waist; he bit back a groan.  His fingers dug into her skin, keeping her anchored to him and relieving his knees of the entire burden of his current assignation.  They both knew Mac’s pale skin would show small bruises from his fingertips, which Will normally avoided religiously.  Today, though, Mac’s insistence had cut through his reservations.

Mackenzie’s hands splayed across Will’s chest, and she pushed herself back just a little to purchase access to Will’s belt.  As the belt was unbuckled, quickly followed by his pants, Will deftly finished unbuttoning the shirt that Mackenzie had initially dislodged a few minutes before.  With no question in either mind as to the terminal goal of the encounter, both Will and Mac allowed their hands to find the places that never failed to elicit an immediate and visceral response.  Will felt his knee twinge and turned quickly to rest Mackenzie on the edge of his desk.  Her legs loosened their lock on Will and his pants dropped to the floor.  Mac flexed her hips and opened her legs; Will heard the seam at the back of Mackenzie’s skirt rip before he processed what she had done.

“Mac,” he tried breathlessly to pull back.  Mackenzie seized the moment to let her shirt fall to the floor.

“It was intentional, Billy,” she said, tightening her legs around him again and pulling him in close to her.

“Wouldn’t it have been equally as easy to just take it off?” Will grumbled against her breast.

“No.”  She wiggled against him and smiled at the moan it drew from Will.  His eyes were half shut, and the jaggedness of his breathing told Mac that he was as enthralled by her as she was by him.

Will looked over Mackenzie’s shoulder and assessed the paperwork on his desk.

“Fuck it,” he mumbled, laying Mackenzie back on the desk.  He hooked a finger in the seam of her underwear and tugged, harder than he intended.  The lace tore, and Mac’s underwear fell to the floor.  “Shit.”  Mackenzie giggled at his frustration.

Without further preamble, Will slid two fingers into Mackenzie, reveling in how ready she was for him and in the muffled sound she made.  Will drove into her, again and again; Mackenzie’s hips bucked, meeting him thrust for thrust.  She clamped her hand over her mouth, biting the heel of her palm in an effort to stifle the groans Will was tearing from her.  Mackenzie was unable to fully quell the shriek of utter pleasure as Will’s tongue joined his fingers.  He mercilessly circled the incredibly sensitive nerves for several moments before sucking it into his mouth.  At the same moment that he scraped it with his teeth, he thrust his fingers deep into Mackenzie and fluttered them at the angle that he knew she needed to come undone.

Mackenzie saw stars as she came hard against Will’s hand.  Her moan was ragged, torn from somewhere deep inside her, somewhere primal.  Will slowed his fingers and pulled his mouth back.  His eyes searched Mackenzie’s, and he found them dark with desire.

“Okay, honey?” Will asked, not sure what answer he was looking for.

She nodded, breathing still harsh and irregular from the intense climax.

“Again.  Please, Billy.”  A small smile played at the corner of Mac’s mouth, the first sign that she was starting to unwind.  _If that’s what it takes to relax her, I’m happy to play along._ Will's mouth found Mackenzie's collarbone.  His teeth scraped it lightly before sucking the delicate skin into his lips.  "More," she whispered.

Will pulled a little harder on the spot, finding encouragement in the hitch in her breathing as he did.  He laid her back on the desk and laid a trail of rough kisses down her body, skipping where Mackenzie most desperately wanted his mouth and continuing on her thighs.  Mac growled as he passed to her thighs, and Will smirked.  He gripped her legs tightly, forcing them wider; Mackenzie moaned, long and guttural, tensing her muscles to increase the pressure that Will needed to open her legs.  Will cocked his eyebrow at her, checking that she was increasing the challenge and not genuinely fighting his advances.  Mackenzie nodded, a glint in her eye that was either stark determination or derisive humor.

"Inside me, Will.  I need you inside me."

He entered her roughly, surging forward to completely sheath himself inside her. The prolonged, ragged groan from Mackenzie told him that he was finding the right tone.  Will withdrew almost completely and slammed home again, leaving Mac whimpering in need.  He braced his hands on her hips and stared down in complete wonder at the woman on her back on his desk.

"Again, Billy."  Will was only too happy to oblige.

Their rhythm grew more frenetic and less intentional as they both built toward their climax.  Mackenzie came up off the desk and wrapped her arms around Will, pressing fierce kisses to his neck and jawline.  Will continued to thrust hard into her; the change in angle everything they both needed.  Mackenzie shuddered into her climax, and Will followed immediately behind her, unable to hold back any longer.

For long minutes, he held her, body tight against his, still buried deep inside her while she clung to him.  He tenderly stroked her hair, pressed kisses to her temple, and used his thumbs to work on the knots in her shoulders.  Still, she remained wrapped up in him.  Eventually, his hands stilled, and he gently grasped her shoulders and set her back from him, just enough to be able to see her face.

“What’s happening right now, Mac?”

“I thought all of it, everything, from over there… I thought I was done with it.  I thought the chapter was closed.”

“What don’t I know, hon?”

“It’s not like that, Billy.”  She slid backward, seating herself fully on the desk and feeling Will slip out of her.  “Over there, it’s a completely different world.  This world, this life, and that one, they’re not compatible.”  Subconsciously, she tugged the cups of her bra back into place.  “It’s not safe for them.”  Mackenzie’s voice dropped.  “Or you.”

“Mackenzie, honey, nothing is going to happen to me.  I promise.”  She looked small and vulnerable sitting on the edge of his desk, half naked with watering eyes.  “There are really smart people keeping us both safe.”  _And if I ever get my hands on Nina, I’ll make her regret ever starting this shitstorm._

“I wasn’t a spy, Billy.  I was just trying to do what was right.”

“I know, Mac.  I know.”  He tucked a lock of her hair that had come loose behind her ear.  “Everything is going to be fine.  Except your skirt.  Your skirt’s toast.”  A smile finally cracked Mackenzie’s worried face.  She came to her feet and reached to unzip her skirt.  “One of those choices that seemed better in the moment?”

“Hand me your stapler, would you?”  She answered his question with a question of her own, grinning as an idea took hold in her mind.  With confidence of purpose, she turned the skirt inside out, lining up the split seam and holding her free hand out for the stapler.

“What are you doing?”  Will sounded skeptical as he watched her begin to carefully staple the material back together.

“I’m doing a field repair, Billy.”  Click.  Click.  Click.  “A pretty damn good one, I think.”  Click, click.  With a flourish, she flipped the garment right side out and gave it a tentative tug at the seam.  “That’ll hold until an intern can get to Barney’s and get me a new skirt.”

“How are you going to explain that?”

“The floors, Will.  They’re so slick.  I’m lucky I didn’t break my neck when I slipped.”

Will chuckled and retrieved Mac’s torn underwear from the corner where he had tossed them before.

“These are completely done, Mac.”  He raised an eyebrow at her.  “You can’t ask an intern for those, huh?”

“No, but I’ll enjoy watching you do your newscast knowing that I’m not wearing any underwear in control.”

They both laughed.

“You’re okay, Mac?  Really?”

“Much better now,” she said lightly.  Will waited, stoically.  “I’m better than I was, and I’ll be alright.  I just wasn’t prepared to have it all brought up again.  But, really, Billy, I’m fine.”

“Okay.  Let’s go put together a rundown.”  He watched her smooth her skirt one last time and free her hair from the knot atop her head.  She gave the brown mass a light shake and smiled at Will.  “You’re the most attractive woman I have ever seen in real life.”

Mackenzie laughed, carefree for just a moment.

“Rundown meeting, Billy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know... it's smut. And we've done that already in this story. BUT IT WAS ALL I HAD TO OFFER.
> 
> Okay, so I would really love to hear from you... but no pressure. I'll be back soon, barring unforeseen blocks (but I think we're back on track).
> 
> Thanks so much, truly, if you're still with me. 
> 
> XOXO,  
> CD


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Will froze as the elevator closed behind him.  Unfamiliar music drifted out from the kitchen.

“Mackenzie?” he called, heading toward the music.  “I thought you and Jim were going to have dinner?”  As he rounded the corner, Will felt his mouth involuntarily stretch into a snarl.  “Brenner.”  Mackenzie’s purse sat in the middle of the island.  “Where the fuck did you get that?”

Brian raised his hands in mock surrender, setting down the glass of scotch that he had apparently fixed himself.  “It came to me through a mutual friend.  She really should be more careful where she sets it down.”

“And being the good Samaritan that you’ve always been, you decided to let yourself in to return it.”  He paused to shoot a pointed look at the glass on the counter.  “And helped yourself to my liquor cabinet.”

“Hey, the keys and cards were just waiting to be brought home.  Ya know?”  Brian shrugged in what he felt was a roguish manner; Will had to bite back a sigh.  _The pompous blowhard._ “And as to the liquor, well, you drink better than I do.”

“You son of a bitch.  Get the fuck out of my house before I have you arrested for breaking and entering.”  Will’s voice was chillingly calm.  When Brian made no move to leave, Will spoke again.  “I was under the impression that we had an understanding about you coming near her.”

“You don’t own her.  I was under the impression that she had the freedom to see anyone she wanted.”

Without missing a beat and entirely certain of Mackenzie, Will responded.  “Did she invite you here, Brenner?”  Brian’s silence told Will all he needed to know.  Will stepped around the island, closing on Brian.  _I knew she didn’t, you asshat._ “Get out.” 

Brian’s fist came out of nowhere, colliding with the side of Will’s face.

 

The elevator dinged open, and Mackenzie kicked her heels in the general direction of the hall tree that Will had ordered for her.  _Someplace for your shoes to go so that you don’t feel guilty about them sitting there,_ he had said to her.  The lights were on, but the apartment was eerily quiet.

“Billy?” she called, heading for the kitchen and freezing as she took in the all too familiar scene in front of her.

The neck of a scotch bottle lay discarded on the floor in an amalgamation of broken glass and the amber liquid.  Papers that had been stacked near the coffee pot were strewn across the counter and the floor.  One of the frames on the wall had spider web cracks running through the glass.  A hole, fist-sized, Mackenzie noted, marred the wall near the refrigerator.  _What the hell happened here?_

“Billy?” Mackenzie called again, more frantically than before.  She heard what sounded like a muffled ‘in here’ and made her way to the bedroom.  Again, she paused to take in the scene before her.  Will clutched her tweezers between his fingers, attempting to pull glass from a long gash on the top of his head.  “Billy!” she shrieked.  Will jumped and flinched at the same time.

“Jesus, don’t sneak up on me like that, Mac.”  His left eye was almost entirely swollen shut, and the skin on most of his knuckles was broken, swollen, and starting to bruise.

“What the actual fuck is going on here?”

“I found your purse,” he said, not making eye contact with her.  “Or, more accurately, it found me.”

“And you fought the entire 7th fleet to get it back?”  Her lips pursed as she waited for more information.

“Brian was waiting in the kitchen when I came home.”  He paused with a grimace as he pulled a few hairs in an attempt to isolate a splinter of glass.  “He and your purse.”  Without a word, Mac took the tweezers from his fingers and began to clean the wound, deftly pulling tiny splinters of glass from in and around the cut.  “I think he was expecting you, but I swear to god, Mac, he threw the first punch.  I was only defending myself.”

_Maybe you should have knocked him out cold for breaking in._ “Billy, I think this is going to need stitches.  It’s really deep.”

“Dammit, Mac!”

She stopped removing the glass from his scalp and raised an eyebrow at him.  “What would you rather me say?”

“He had your purse.  He was in our kitchen.”  Mackenzie didn’t miss him referring to the kitchen as theirs; she fought off the warmth that came with acknowledging a physical home as well as an emotional one in Will.

“Will, you don’t have to justify yourself to me.”  She dabbed peroxide onto the open laceration, now free of glass.  Will hissed but didn’t flinch away.  “Would you put some ice on that eye if I brought it to you?”  _Make-up is going to have a field day with this.  He won’t be able to go on tomorrow._

“I don’t have to justify myself to you?”  Will reached to encircle both of Mackenzie’s wrists with trembling fingers.  “Mackenzie, look at me.”  Her eyes stanchly stared at the hands holding her arms immobile, fighting back tears.  Will’s grip loosened, and he gently tipped her chin upward with the arm that was moving freely.  “Honey, talk to me.”

“Oh, Billy,” her words were nothing more than a broken whisper.  “I’m so sorry.  This is all my fault.”

Tears spilled over at that point, and Mackenzie sniffed lightly.  It took Will a moment to digest the words.

“How on earth could this be your fault, Mac?”

“He’s only in our lives because I brought him here.  If I had left him before…” she broke off, lost in her own thoughts momentarily, “we wouldn’t be picking glass out of your scalp right now.”

“Hey,” he did his best to put his arms around her, but he was more and more certain that his left shoulder was dislocated because, while he could move his fingers, lifting his arm was an almost insurmountable challenge.  “Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.”  He repeated the word as she cried on his chest.  “I’m fine.  Everything is fine.”  She looked up at him.

“This is so far from fine, Billy.”

He offered a wry smile.  “It’s certainly not an everyday occurrence to get a bottle cracked over your head in your own home, I’ll give you that.”

Mackenzie tried to slip under Will’s arm, seeking the reassurance that his physical closeness provided.  As she lifted his arm, Will yelped and jumped back.

“That’s it.  We’re going to the hospital.  Right now.”  Will nodded once.  Mackenzie held a hand up to him.  “Hang on.  Let me do something about your arm.”

“Don’t touch it!” Will cried, looking pained.  Mac shook her head and moved toward the closet.

“Just hold still for a moment.”  She reappeared with a large Hermes scarf and folded it into a wide triangle.  “It’s going to hurt like hell, but use your good arm to bend the other at the elbow.”  When he didn’t move, she frowned deeply at him.  “I guarantee the ride will be worse if you don’t, Will.”

“You’ve got no sympathy.  None whatsoever.”  He growled the words as he gingerly lifted his left forearm with his right.  Mackenzie slipped the makeshift sling around his elbow and came close to Will to tie it behind his neck.  She could feel his breath warm on her neck and smiled when he kissed her, oh so gently, as she finished securing the scarf.  As she stepped back, she swept the hair from his forehead.

“Better?”

“Much as it pains me to admit it, the pressure isn’t on it now.”  He smiled.  “Thanks.”  He took a step toward the door and stopped, realization rolling over him.  “You’re not bad with blood and busted shoulders.”

Mac shrugged lightly, dismissing the comment.  _Between Brian’s drunken rages and all the time overseas, I’m practically a certified medic._ “Charlie’s going to have a field day with this.”  Will was not to be put off so easily.

“You’ve done this before.”

“A time or two.”  She watched him open his mouth to speak and then swallow the words.  _Hard to know what to say._

“Mackenzie, the night that Brian… the night that you…” he stumbled through the beginning of the question, fully halting his words when Mac stopped walking.

“It’s not for tonight.  Just leave it.”

 

Hours later, Will was heavily sedated, and Mackenzie wound so tightly she feared she might pop.  Much to their chagrin, the ER doctor had made the decision to keep Will overnight, fearing a tear in Will’s rotator cuff that couldn’t be diagnosed until the swelling went down.  As the swelling around his eye had begun to recede, Will had been startled to find that a blood vessel in the same had burst.

“Fuck.  It’s not like there’s any kind of post-production on live news,” he had mumbled.  Mackenzie had phoned Charlie without a word to Will and arranged for a week’s vacation for them both, providing as little detail as possible.  Without work to occupy her mind, Mackenzie’s mind raced, weaving in and out of Brian’s encounter with Will, the tabloid stories, the engagement ring that weighed heavily on her finger.

“You’re so beautiful,” Will drawled, recalling Mac from her reverie.

“You’re stoned.”

“I’m totally lucid.”  His eyes fluttered shut, but his words continued.  “I should have seen it before.”  Mackenzie made a sound that Will took as encouragement.  “You’ve got it, too.”

“Billy, hush now and try to sleep.  You’re not making sense.”

“Stoic acceptance of a bloody cut.  Irrational guilt.”  His chin dropped to his chest for a moment; a snore rumbled through the back of his throat.  Then, like a marionette on a string, Will’s head popped back up, his eyes opening and searching to find Mackenzie.  “Don’t know why I didn’t see it before.”  His eyes drooped, and he held his good eyelid open with two fingers.  “Never knew.”  Mackenzie felt her world recede, and she fought back a wave of nausea.  “So strong, Mac.  Too strong for your own good.”  He let his eye close, and sleep claimed him.  Mackenzie concentrated on breathing in and breathing out.

“You were never supposed to know, Billy,” she eventually whispered in the direction of Will’s snores. 

Mackenzie had worked tirelessly to maintain the façade of stalwart mettle after her initial time in the Middle East.  And when she had fallen in with Brian, there had initially been a comfort in not being expected to be anyone, in being treated as less than; it had meshed with her own self-view at the time.  As she had continued to heal and to work through the demons that had followed her across the world, Brian’s behavior had become less and less tolerable, and she had been working toward an exit when he had proposed.  Mackenzie had been startled into accepting the proposal; she never intended to go through with the wedding, and there would certainly have never been a marriage.  Though it was only in the last few weeks that Mac had started to acknowledge it to herself, the night that Brian had put her in the hospital had provided her the exit that she had been searching for.  Looking back, the only thing that had set that night apart from the others was Will’s involvement and the severity of the fall, and so, it wasn’t immediately apparent to her why she had felt the need to meet with Brian about it all those months ago; she suspected it had to do with Will.  Throughout the entire process, Mac had taken pride in never letting on that she was broken, that she was searching.  With Will, she was whole, her demons were conquered; and, because he hadn’t known about them, their relationship wasn’t colored by the things that Brian had done to her or the things that had happened overseas.  The tabloid stories had started to draw back the veil.  Will knew; it seemed like everyone knew.  And tonight, in a haze of sedatives and bruises, Will had seen through to the heart of her secrets; the front she had created was cracking and crumbling before her eyes.  “Please, please, don’t let it change anything.” 

Her words sounded to her own ears like a prayer.  Mackenzie pulled her knees up close to her chest and rested her forehead on them.  She closed her eyes and escaped into a light and dreamless sleep, keeping one ear open for any sound from Will.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, but before you say anything, just remember that I don't do sad endings... everything is going to end well, I promise. But we can't get to a strong relationship without going through a little fire together.
> 
> Thoughts???
> 
> Love each of you whose still here!


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All,  
> Apologies for the delay. My computer had a mini-meltdown, and I lost three chapters worth of writing. What you're getting today is a condensed version of those three chapters boiled down to one-- recreation proved harder than I anticipated!
> 
> I think we'll have 10ish chapters more in this story, and then it'll wrap up. I've got some ideas for a new piece... a total AU that I'm not sure will sell around here, but I'll probably give it a shot and see what y'all think.
> 
> Thanks for sticking around!  
> C

Chapter 18

Will was awakened by the throbbing of his shoulder.  _Shit._ He gave it a careful test shrug.  _Fuck._   It hurt ‘like a bitch’, as his brother would say, but it responded to his signal.  Will relaxed, feeling confident that no permanent damage had been done.  He raised his eyebrows, pleased to find that the swelling around his eye had receded enough to allow him control of his expressions again.  The stitches in his hairline pulled though, and he pulled a breath in through his teeth.  Having taken stock of himself and the extent of his injuries, Will turned his head toward the last place he remembered Mackenzie being:  the chair beside his bed.  He sighed in relief as his gaze came to rest on her, but as he took her in, he frowned.  Knees drawn to her chest, head resting on the plane of her knees, she appeared to be asleep, but her expression was drawn and tears had dried on her cheeks.

“Mac,” he said softly.  “Mackenzie,” he tried a little louder.  She didn’t stir.  With great care, Will climbed out of the bed and made his way to the bathroom.  “She can’t be comfortable,” he mumbled as he went. 

One arm in a sling, the logistics of using the restroom were questionable, and washing his free hand was, at best, a sight to see.  He splashed some water on his face and took a minute to examine himself in the mirror.  _I look like hell.  And old, I look old._ One more splash of water to his face and he flicked the lights out in the white tile room.  Mackenzie hadn’t moved.  Will crossed the room to her and brushed her hair from her eyes.  She groaned lightly.  “Come on, hon,” he coaxed, draping one of her arms over his bad shoulder.  Her other arm followed, looping around his neck, but she still didn’t fully wake.  _Only Mackenzie could fall this deeply asleep in that position._ He took a steadying breath and slid his good arm around Mackenzie’s waist.  Suddenly grateful that his knees hadn’t been involved in his earlier brawl, he shifted his sleeping fiancé from the chair against his body and held her there with one arm.  _Okay, but this is one of those times that I wish someone was filming my life.  I’m a knight in shining fucking armor._   As gently as he could, he laid Mackenzie in his hospital bed and maneuvered himself in behind her.  She stretched out alongside him, and he shifted as best he could to keep pressure off his shoulder while keeping Mac tucked in close beside him.  They slept through the night, oblivious to the comings and goings of nurses checking on Will.  For the time being, they were cocooned in the safety and comfort of their relationship, needing only the closeness of each other.

 

Two days later, Will was home, resting on the couch, and chafing under the restraints of being held to a sling.  The MRI had come back clear, and in the next two weeks, the doctors had promised that he could begin to use his arm and shoulder again.  After the first night of watching Elliot and Don cover their show, both Mac and Will had decided to fully embrace the unexpected time off and ‘tune out’ for the rest of the week.  Their second string was fully capable, they had agreed.  The pain in his shoulder was starting to become bearable, and Will had transitioned from the prescription painkillers to ibuprofen.

“Hey,” Will called over his shoulder.  “You’re in the kitchen again.”

_Yes.  I am.  In the kitchen.  Away from another strained interaction with my fiancé._

“Did you need something?”  Mackenzie came into the living room and stood between Will and the television.  Will switched it off.

“You want to sit down?”

“I’m working on… something.  In the kitchen,” she finished lamely.

“Mac.”  They stared at each other for several long moments.  “Tell me what’s going on.”  Silence stretched between them again.  “Okay.  You’re freaking me out.”  He watched as she bit her lip and began to pace in front of him.  “Seriously freaking me out.”  He watched her pace for another few steps.  “Is this about the fight?  Everything is okay, hon.  I’m fine.”  She carded her hands in her hair.  Realization flashed in Will’s mind.  “Mackenzie,” Will’s tone changed, and Mac’s pacing stopped.  “Mackenzie, honey, come here.”

“This!”  Mac spun on her heel to face Will.  “This is exactly why I never wanted you to know!”  The pacing started again.  “Can’t you try to understand?”

“Mackenzie, does what you know about my childhood, about my father, change how you interface with me?”

“I don’t know.  I don’t think so.  I don’t know how it couldn’t.”

“Okay well those were three different statements that mean three different things,” he offered a wry smile in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere.  “Mac, you’re the strongest person I’ve ever met.  We don’t have to talk about it.  Ever.”  His eyes tracked her as she crossed back and forth and back again across the room.  “I mean that in every moment except this one.  You can’t live in the in the kitchen, and I can’t live in the living room.  We can both live in the kitchen.  We could both live in the bedroom.  Fuck, we can sell this place and live in an abandoned train car in Jersey.  But we’ve got to do it together.  That was the deal.”  Her expression changed; her internal struggles beat a path across her face.  “Why, Mac?  Why does it have you so unspooled?”

“Because the next time I flinch in bed, whether you’ve knelt on my hair or my skin’s pinched somewhere, you’re going to freak out, even more than before.”  She pressed her index fingers hard into her eyebrows.  “Because,” her voice grew soft, “I knew it was fucked, and I stayed.  For ages, I stayed.  Watching.  Like an outsider to my own life.”  She crossed the room and sank down onto the couch next to Will.  _I don’t want to see the look on his face.  Can’t see it._   “Because how can you raise a family with me if I wasn’t willing to protect myself.  How can you trust me with our children when…”  She trailed off, leaving her meaning hanging heavily in the air.

Will was silent for a long time.  Mackenzie sat equally quiet next to him, and the silence stretched.  When his hand reached for hers, Mackenzie didn’t hesitate before putting her hand in his and holding it tightly.

“Oh Mackenzie,” he exhaled his words.  “Hon, I have no doubt you’d walk in front of a Range Rover for me, and I bet you’d be able to stop the same vehicle with two thumbs to keep it from reaching our children.”  He gently tugged her hand closer to him, willing her to lean into him.  “You’re the EP of a news broadcast that fights to do better every day.  Weren’t you the one who taught me that it was in our DNA?”  She nodded once, tentatively, uncertain of his direction.  “If that isn’t a metaphor for how you live your life, I don’t know what is.  Every.  Single.  Day.  Mackenzie, every single day.  You get out of bed, and you work to inform the world in a way that makes me want to be a better person.  You do that all while commanding the respect of everyone around you.  Do you think that I’ve misjudged you so dramatically?  That our entire team has?  That Charlie has?”  He felt his argument building, and his volume and passion grew with it.  “If you’re still trying to decide if you can trust yourself, then trust me instead.  Trust our team.  We’d all take a bullet for you, just like you’d do for us.  There is no one with whom I would rather raise a family, but only if you want it.”  Mackenzie’s mouth opened, but Will pressed one finger to her lips.  “Before you say anything, take a minute, just one, to think about what I said.  Doubting yourself is just like doubting me.  I _know_ you, Mackenzie.  My heart knows yours.  Have faith in my faith in you.”

Mackenzie pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and sat quietly, allowing Will’s words marinate in her mind.  Eventually, she nodded, two short bobs of her head, before allowing Will’s good arm to pull her close to him.  They fell asleep like that, Will whispering love and trust into Mac’s hair, Mac desperately wanting to believe in herself the way that Will did.  _Tomorrow.  And one day after that.  One day at a time._

 

**Two Weeks Later**

Routine was becoming an object of comfort again, and both Will and Mackenzie were giving the show every ounce of energy they possessed.

Mackenzie walked into her office by rote, staring at the newspaper in her hand.  She rounded her desk and laid the paper down before seeing the man seated in the corner.  Jumping visibly, Mackenzie swore.

“Shit.”  She tugged the reading glasses from the bridge of her nose, dropping them onto her desk as she sat.  “What are you doing here?”  _When it rains, it goddamn pours._

“You’ve been causing quite a stir in my office, Mac.”

Immediately, Mac felt her back go up.  “You know that I didn’t start that.  You’ve got a leak somewhere on your side of the house, Tom.”

“No shit.”  The man sighed heavily.  “That’s part of why I’m here.”  He paused and raised a hand as Mackenzie started to interrupt.  “Just let me finish.”  Mackenzie nodded.  “We think the leak is coming from someone who was on your team during the last assignment.”

Mackenzie blanched.  The last assignment had wrapped up just before she returned to the states, just before she came back to Will.  It had been a scrum from the beginning, all loose ends and bad information.  Mac hadn’t felt good about the information that she had retrieved, the interviews she had conducted, or the team with whom she was working.  The unsettled feeling with which the assignment had left her had triggered her sudden departure from foreign coverage and liaison work.

“That assignment was mismanaged from the beginning, Tom.  You and I both know it.  The area was crawling with other foreign operatives.  They made your crew as soon as we arrived.  If it wasn’t for the stories that I was churning out, they’d have locked us all up.”

“I know that, Mackenzie.”  Tom sounded resigned to the hostility that Mackenzie was directing at him.  “But there’s something you don’t know.”  Mackenzie looked expectantly at him.  “There was another operation at play in the same place at the same time.  Your team was, more or less, a dummy team.  Your guys provided cover for the underground team.”

Mackenzie looked as if someone had struck her.

“Was the other team successful?”

“Extremely.”

“Well that’s good,” Mackenzie spat sarcastically.  “Jesus, Tom.  You couldn’t have read someone in to that?”

“We needed you to believe it as much as the locals.”

“That assignment is why I’m here now, instead of there.”

“It was poorly handled on a lot of levels.”  He shrugged.  “I can’t apologize, Mac.  We got what we needed from your cover.”

They sat in tense silence for more than a minute.

“What are you doing here, Tom?”  Mackenzie circled back to the question she had posed at the beginning of the conversation.

“I want you to help me find and plug the leak.”

“Fuck you.”  Mackenzie stared levelly at the agent in her office.  “I’ve spent the last few weeks trying to convince my team that I’m not a spy, that I was just doing my part for my country, like anyone would do.  Because I believed that, Tom.  That was what you made me believe!  And now you’re here, in my office, asking me to help you track down a leak.  I’m not a spy.  I’m not an agent of your organization.  I’m a citizen, and I did my duty.  I’m done.”

“You could have been.”  He stood and crossed the room to stand in front of Mac’s desk.  She stood too, refusing to allow him the upper hand.  “You were fantastic at getting the information that we didn’t even know we needed.  No one treated you like you weren’t part of the team.  Your journalistic activities provided great cover.  So, we didn’t pull the plug on them.  For all intents and purposes, you were, how did you put it?, an ‘agent of my organization’.”  His tone sharpened.  “Fuck, Mac.  You know things that no civilian should.”

“That’s on you, not me.  I did as I was asked, as a civilian journalist.”  She locked eyes with him.  “I don’t work for you.”

“Mackenzie, this is bigger than you being pissed off that we used you.  We’ve got to find this guy.  There are people out there, right now, doing exactly what you were doing.  I need you.”

Mackenzie sat down again.  Tom could see the wheels in her head turning.

“I’ll give you one week.  I won’t lie to my fiancé, and you’ve got to let me get my work here done.”  She paused, weighing her words carefully.  “And when this is done, your guys forget that they ever knew me.”  She sighed.  “I’m getting married, Tom.  We’re going to start a family.  I can’t protect them if you guys keep showing up here.”

“Two weeks.”  He took his seat again.  “Give me two weeks to get the situation in hand.  We’ll base near here so that your work won’t suffer.  Fair?”

“And I’ll never have to see any of you again?”

Tom chuckled.  “I should be offended, Mac.  Most people really like me.”

“You don’t throw monkey wrenches into most people’s lives.”

“We’ll lose your phone number as soon as it’s done.”

“You’ll lose my number after two weeks, whether it’s done or not.”

“Someone will be in touch.”  His mission accomplished, Tom rose and slid his arms into his jacket.  He picked up his umbrella, and crossed Mac’s office, pausing at the door.  “Congratulations on the engagement, Mackenzie.  You deserve all the happiness in the world.”  With that, he was gone.

Mackenzie waited only a moment before dialing Will’s office line from hers.

“Hey hon,” Will answered the phone.

“I need a cup of coffee.  Want to take a walk around the block with me?”

“It’s raining to beat the band.  Can you send an intern?”

“I need to talk to you.”  She waited a beat.  “I’m trying to do this the right way, Will.  Above board.”

“I’ll be right in.”  Will fired off a text to security, requesting a car meet them at the front doors.  “I’ll have a car waiting for us.”

“Okay.  I love you, Will.”

“Honey, everything is going to be okay.”

“I hope so.”  She disconnected the call, and exited her office.  Will’s door opened, and his eyes bored holes right through her.  “Just hold until we’re in the car,” she said quietly, following him to the elevator.  He nodded.

When they returned, almost an hour later, firm resolve radiated off them in waves.  The staff exchanged worried glances; the absence of their bosses had been noticeable.  As Mackenzie turned toward her office, Will’s voice stopped her.

“Together, Mackenzie.”  His tone left no room for discussion, and Mackenzie offered a small but sure smile.

“In all things, Will.”  More glances flew across the room as the staff had silent conversations.  Mackenzie didn’t miss them.  “That is quite enough of that.”  She smiled at the room of journalists.  “How are we reclaiming the fourth estate today?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoyed it? Not so much? Special requests for the remaining chapters? Let me know! I thrive on feedback!  
> xoxo


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A mildly short chapter that was built to create a bubble around our lovebirds before all of the balls they've got in the air start tumbling down.
> 
> SueG5123, my dear, I fully promise a Brian Brenner status report in the next chapter. And because I made you wait for it (again), I'll add an extra broken bone, alright? Your patience is much appreciated!
> 
> whufc, darling, I'm sorry it's Tuesday and not Sunday that this is going up! In penance, I'll pledge you my entire bi-coastal flight tomorrow on more pages.

Chapter 19

Charlie Skinner growled into the phone received at the executive from BlueNorth, the security firm retained to protect of the studio talent on an as-needed basis, who had phoned in to report a tail on Mackenzie McHale.

“Why the fuck was your team on McHale?” Charlie stormed at the caller.  Thunder rang outside.  Charlie nodded solemnly at the window.  _Tell me a-fucking-bout it._

“It was a coincidence, sir.  One of my teams was on Sabbith- we’re still tracking that stalker, remember- and the two had lunch.  My guys caught wind of the tail when they were escorting McHale and Sabbith back to AWM.  Our team called back-up to AWM and checked out the guys that they thought were following Sabbith.  When McHale left with McAvoy around 9:45pm, McHale was tailed as she left.  They’re very good, sir.”  The man paused, debating his words.  “But my team is better.  They know New York, and they know the AWM staff.  They become invisible while the other guys just become nondescript.”

“Alright.”  Charlie sighed.

“How do you want to proceed?”

“How do I want to--- what?”

“Do you want us to stay with McHale?  Should we dismiss it?”

“Christ.  No.  Stay with her.  Don’t make yourself known, for god’s sake.  She’d be furious.”

“Yes, sir.”

Charlie opened his mouth to end to call when lighting sounded just outside the window, and the office was plunged into darkness.  The line went dead, and he punched the button on the phone several times.

“Goddamnit, sometimes I miss the old technology,” Charlie swore at the VOIP phone, rendered useless in the power outage.  He set the receiver back in the phone cradle slowly, weight of the report he had just been given creating a sinking feeling in his stomach. 

The outer office was empty; Millie had been gone for hours.  When the power didn’t immediately return immediately, Charlie consulted the watch in his pocket.  12:45am.  Part of him felt guilty for still being in the office, for being in the office so often this late that BlueNorth knew they could reach him at this time.  The other part of him focused on the immediate problem:  a tail on his star EP and protégé.  Consulting his cellphone, Charlie was pleased to note bars indicating service to the device still.  He dialed Mackenzie’s number and then Will’s.  No answer on either line.  Once more, Charlie tried both lines, knowing that they would check in as soon as they saw his calls.  The power still had not returned.  A frown creased the older man’s brow as he stared out the window, forty four floors above the ground.  Power seemed to be out all over the city.  He sent off a text to Nancy, letting her know that he was fine, but that he wouldn’t be braving the stairs and that he would call her in the morning.  With a heaving sigh, Charlie loosed the knot on his bowtie and stepped out of his shoes while he moved toward the bar in the corner.  He poured himself a three finger bourbon and surveyed his options before sinking into the club chair in the corner.  _This will have to do._

 

 

Mackenzie’s head fell back, crashing onto the pillow, utterly spent and exhausted, legs still tangled with Will’s.  She could hear his breathing, still harsh and ragged from the force of his climax.

“Okay, Billy?” she asked, surprised by how heavy her own voice still sounded.  Will made a noise that qualified somewhere between a grunt and a word.  For a moment, there was silence.

“Okay, Mac.”

Thunder crashed around them, and lightning flashed, momentarily illuminating the darkened room.  When they had awakened early in the day to find a city-wide blackout, they had lit candles for novelty.  Now, the sun had gone down, and the flickering of the candle flames provided the only light in the apartment.  Shadows played on the walls as the flames danced.  Mac shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again, smiling into the darkness.

“How long do you think the power will stay out?”

“Until it comes back on,” Will drawled.  Mac could hear sleep at the edge of his voice.

“It’s been raining for ages, though.  Thank god it’s the weekend.  Can you imagine if were trying to figure out the show without power in this weather?”

“You would figure it out, Mac.  You always do.”  He patted her thigh, the only part of her body that he could really reach without moving.  “Close your eyes, hon.  It won’t feel so dark if you’re sleeping.”

“I’m not sleepy.  I’m hungry.”

She disentangled her legs from his and got out of the bed, deliciously sore and a little sticky.  She heard herself sigh, contented in ways that she had never even known were possible, and she stooped to pick up Will’s discarded button-down from earlier.  As she slipped it on, leaving it open, she stole from the room, the evenness of Will’s breathing letting her know that he had slipped into a blissful haze of sleep.

The old fashioned crank Victrola caught her eye as she passed it.  It was one of the only things of his mother’s that Will had claimed during the disposal of the family home.  Before her first middle east assignment, Mackenzie had been helping Will settle into his apartment and had come across an old photo of Will’s mother and his grandfather, black and white, yellowed with age, dancing in their living room.  His mother was young, maybe 10 or 11, and she looked carefree and joyful.  When she had asked Will about the photo, he had pointed to the Victrola in the background.  “She loved music,” was all he had said.  Will chose to remember her like that, she knew.  Free, young, and unmarred by the harsh realities of an abusive, alcoholic husband.  She paused, staring at player for another moment before setting a record on and cranking it up.  The music cascaded over Mackenzie, and she listened in place for a moment before making her way into the kitchen.  The cliché of Etta James’ Stormy Weather in the fierce bluster that clamored outside wasn’t lost on Mackenzie, but tonight, the familiarity of the music outweighed the banality.

She surveyed the room around her.  A half-drunk bottle of wine, some dried apricots, the scattered remains of a bunch of grapes, half of a wheel of brie, the remainders of their late afternoon supper.  A serene smile settled across Mac’s lips, and she poured a glass of wine from the earlier opened bottle. 

“Grilled cheese,” she said to herself.  _God bless that gas stove._

She sliced the apricots to ribbons cut the brie into thin strips before slicing into the loaf of crusty bread that had come in the Dean and Deluca basket sent by one of Will’s siblings to belatedly celebrate their engagement.  She drizzled butter-infused olive oil in the bottom of a skillet and brought the stove to life.  As she was assembling the sandwich, a restless groan sounded from the bedroom.  _Best make two.  Just in case._ Mackenzie swayed in time with the music, lost in her thoughts as she toasted one side and then the other of each sandwich.  Both sandwiches had reached oozing perfection and had been transferred to plate, and Mac reached to turn off the stove, still following the music.  She should have been startled by Will’s hand tracing the rounded curve of her backside and by his arms them wrapping around her waist, pulling her back tight against his chest; the gentleness of his touch and the feel of his mouth at the juncture of her neck and ear soothed her even before she was able to start.     

“Have a nice nap?” she quipped, letting her hands drop to cover his at her middle and relaxing her head to rest against him.

“Who can sleep with you out here making a ruckus?”  He smiled, and she snorted lightly.  “Very resourceful, a hot dinner in a power outage.”  Mackenzie bit back a groan as her earlobe was caught between his teeth and tugged gently.  “Smells good,” Will drawled, kissing her neck again before turning her in his arms and taking her hand in his.

“Me or dinner?”  Her cheek was laid against his bare chest, and she felt rather than heard the chuckle bubble up from him.  “Hungry?”

“Not hungry enough to move from this spot.”  They swayed together now, embracing the moment, each following their respective train of thought down divergent paths.  The record popped, skipped, and found a catch that broke the tender spell surrounding them.  Will pressed a soft kiss to Mac’s temple and moved the change the offending album.  Mackenzie turned back to the sandwiches and cut them both in half, smiling as the soft bluesy strains of French music drifted back from the freshly cranked player.  “Now,” Will husked, coming back into the kitchen, “where were we?”  He lifted her wine glass and sipped from it.

“About to eat these grilled cheeses before they get cold and the cheese firms up.”  She offered Will a plate and a smile, both of which he accepted gratefully.  “You know both of our phones are totally dead?”  She took a hearty bite of her sandwich, savoring the creamy feel of the brie and the slight tang of the fruit.  Her eyes drifted closed, for just a moment, and Will watched her with rapt fascination.  _It’s the smallest things that make her happy._

“It’s been almost twenty four hours without power.  I assume most people’s are.”

“I’d bet Neal still has a phone and the internet.”

“I’m sure he does.  Do we need to call someone?”

“Just feeling a little like a de-barked dog not being able to check on the world.”

“I don’t know how it remembers to spin without you managing it, Mac,”  Will said, edge taken off the words by the tender tone of his voice, almost as if he believed that the world would, in fact, stop turning without her.

Mackenzie stopped; the moment washed over her.  By the time she had recovered enough to speak, Will had finished half of his sandwich.  He drained the rest of Mac’s wine in one sip, and when he looked turned his attention back to Mackenzie, it was his turn to pause.

“What?” he queried, meeting the wide, dewy eyes of the woman he loved.

“Sometimes, you’re just,” she paused and smiled at Will, “the man of any girl’s dreams.  You know?”  He offered her a quizzical expression, and she continued, “You’re here, with me, making the world turn for me, looking at me like you do.”

For a moment, Will tried to find the right words to express himself to Mackenzie, to make her understand that she was why his world turned, that even though he had loved before, she was his beginning and his end; she was his ultimate.  After a few beats, the words didn’t come, and Will reached for Mackenzie, pulling her close.

“Mac,” he whispered, capturing her lips between his.  Her body melted into his, and Will was suddenly reminded that he wore only boxers and that she wore only his barely buttoned oxford-cloth.  He growled as Mac’s hands threaded in his hair, anchoring his mouth to her.  Mackenzie’s tongue traced Will’s bottom lip, and her hips pressed harder against him.  Will reached between them and flicked the buttons of his shirt free, never breaking contact with her lips while he tugged the shirt off her shoulders and trailed his hands down Mac’s back.  Her arms, caught in the sleeves, came to her side, and her chin came up, exposing the alabaster skin of her neck.  Will seized the opportunity to move his mouth to Mac’s neck, and she freed herself from the confines of the shirt.

Will grasped Mac’s now uncovered hips and lifted her onto the counter.  She squeaked a little as she made contact with the cool countertop and buried the noise in a chuckle.  Her smile was quickly replaced by a low moan as Will gently pushed her shoulders back until she rested on her elbows.  With a mischievous grin, Will seized the bottle of wine from the counter and tipped some wine onto Mac’s stomach, following it down with his mouth.  His tongue dipped into her navel, making quick work of the wine.  Confident hands spread Mac’s knees, and Will stepped between them.  Mackenzie felt Will, hard through his boxers, and bit back a moan.  Will’s mouth found Mac’s breast, and neither could contain their both satisfied and still hungry noises.

Just as Will’s fingers grazed Mac, finding her already devastatingly ready for him, the building hummed, and lights came on all over the penthouse.  Mac’s arms flew to cross over her eyes, blinded by the lights overhead.

“Fuck,” Mac gasped, startled.  Will pulled back and helped Mackenzie sit up fully.

“Okay, hon?”

She nodded, but before she could respond, the cordless phone began to ring.

“Back to reality, I guess,” she shrugged, attempting to drown the desire in her voice.  The phone continued to ring.  Mac pressed a light kiss to Will’s lips.  Ring.  Ring.  “Can you grab the phone, please?”  She inclined her head toward the phone.  “I’ll pull on a shirt and be right with you.”  She smiled at the crestfallen look on Will’s face as she slid off the counter.  “The phone, Billy,” she chided, gently, feeling his eyes on her backside as she bent to retrieve the shirt that had been carelessly discarded minutes before.  Will finally moved to the phone.

“Hello?”  A pause.  “Charlie, hey.  We’re fine.  Why?  What’s happening?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, words can't express my gratitude to all of you who continue to read this and especially to those who take the time to let me know what you think... it's motivating in ways that I can't even describe!
> 
> Still open to a few suggestions related to anything y'all might want to see in the last 10 (or so) chapters!  
> xoxo


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Darlings, the smut is for whufc, who requested some sort of satifaction after the abrupt cutoff to last chapter's amorous pursuits. The (admittedly brief) mention of Brian's injuries is for SueG5123--- there will be an interaction in the coming chapters, but I didn't want you to have to wonder any longer!
> 
> I hope everyone is well, and I hope you all enjoy chapter 20!

Chapter 20

For Will, the entire experience was surreal.  The externally nondescript, black town car (not an SUV; Mackenzie had patiently explained that they were obvious) that seemed to be a tank from the inside.  The BlueNorth security team that Will would never have noticed except that they introduced themselves in Will’s apartment when they arrived to escort Mackenzie (and him, he guessed) to AWM headquarters.  The meeting in Charlie’s office where Mackenzie explained, briefly, to Charlie what exactly was going on, including her most recent meeting with her contact from the CIA.  Mackenzie, with a deep frown, identifying the photos of the team that was trailing her, expertly presented by BlueNorth (and god, these guys were good at their job).  The confusion as Mackenzie’s eyes locked with his for a moment; he sensed that she was trying to impart some sort of comfort to him.  Then, the sensation of utter terror as the woman he loved blinked slowly, once and then again, and transformed before his eyes into a woman with very little visible emotion and eyes that could only be categorized as ‘cold’. 

Mackenzie felt her world narrow as the pictures were laid in front of her.  She knew these men, had lived in close quarters with them for several weeks during her last Middle East assignment-- a story about which she had been passionate, but that had provided a cover of which she had been doubtful even then-- she had put her life, her civilian journalist life, in their hands when things seemed to be going sideways.  Seeing them, tailing her, obvious bulges on their hips, brought the taste of bile to the back of her throat.  They weren’t protecting her this time; she was their mark.  Instinctively, Mackenzie knew that she wasn’t in danger; the shitstorm that would rain down upon the CIA for wounding or, god-forbid, killing a civilian, and even further, doing so on US soil would be enough to end the administrators and probably the congressional oversight committee members, too.  It didn’t change the fact that she knew those faces, and they were keeping their eyes locked on her.

“Your guys are impressive, Lonny.”  Mackenzie nodded in the direction of their BlueNorth contact.  “I’ve seen these guys fade into nothingness in the desert.”

“Well, I guess urban landscapes aren’t their area of expertise, Ms. McHale.  My guys picked them up as soon as you and Sloan Sabbith left lunch.”  Lonny offered a smile, mildly cocky but reassuring.

“It’s Mackenzie, Mac, really.  I should have seen them,” Mackenzie said, shaking her head lightly.  She glanced at Will with apologetic eyes.   “I just wasn’t… I didn’t expect, and I wasn’t watching.”

“I don’t think that, in New York City, you should be concerned about a CIA team tailing you.  Doesn’t feel like that should even be legal.  Isn’t the CIA barred from conducting any operations on US soil?”  Mackenzie heard the indignation in Will’s voice.

“I think the FBI looks the other way when the CIA is policing its own,” Charlie mumbled.

“Jesus, it sounds like we’re talking about the mob!”  Will threw up his hands.

Mackenzie stared at the pictures on the table in front of her for long moments, feeling the air around her grow thinner and cooler with each passing moment.  Finally, she blinked, trying to clear her mind of the faces that felt burned into her retinas.  Resolved stiffened her posture, and she reached across Charlie’s desk for his office phone.

“Tom,” she spoke, even-toned, into the receiver.  “I need to see you.”  Her eyes caught Will’s and read the distress in his expression.  “Yes.  It is quite urgent.  We’ll wait for you here.  44th floor of AWM.”  Less than twenty minutes later, the tall man in the trench coat came through the door of Charlie’s office.  “It’s… it’s just a stereotype, Tom.  You and that damned trench coat.”

“You know it’s still raining, right, Mackenzie?”  He dusted water from his shoulders and spoke with clipped words.  “What’s this about?” Tom asked, taking in the stony faces of the others in the room.

“It’s about this, Tom,” Mackenzie responded, handing him the photos that Lonny had held out to her.  “It’s about you treating me like I’m something I’m not and about the problems you’re making for me,” she paused, remaining virtually emotionless, “for my future.”  The trench coat flapped as its owner shrugged several times, visibly uncomfortable at the turn of events.  “There’s absolutely nothing you can say,” she continued, the smallest amount of disappointment creeping into her voice, “that is going to make me trust you at this point.”  She stepped forward and reclaimed the photos from him.  “I’m done with you and your ‘organization’.  How _dare_ you play on my patriotism, or my sense of honor and duty, or whatever it was that brought you into my office!”  Mackenzie’s voice was starting to creep upward in register.  She felt her icy mask slipping and committed to her current path.  “Go to hell, Tom.  You’ve had all the help you’re going to get from me.”

Mackenzie saw Lonny shift his position from beside her, and he eased the pictures from Mackenzie’s shaking hands.  As he came to stand mostly in front of Mackenzie, Lonny spoke.

“I think you’d be best served to be on your way, sir, whether to hell or somewhere else” Lonny directed the words to Tom.  “Ms. McHale sounded pretty sincere, and my job is to make her problems go away.”  For a moment, the man in the trench coat appeared to debate whether to leave or to stand his ground.  Then, he turned and moved toward the door.

“Mackenzie, you and I both know that it isn’t this easy to walk away,” Tom said, pausing in the doorway.

“And you and I both know that this is why the press functions independently of the government,” Charlie said with barely constrained derision.  “Mackenzie is off limits to you until such time as she cares to be in touch.  It’s questionable enough for you to be using a civilian to do your dirty work on US soil, but putting a tail on her sends you right over the edge into impropriety.  Wouldn’t it make a great special report?”

Charlie let his threat follow the flapping trench coat out of the office.  Silence hung heavily around them for a beat after the elevator sounded.

“Your job is to make my problems go away?”  Mackenzie looked at Lonny with a smirk.

“Ms. McHale—“  He was cut off by Mackenzie.

“Please, it’s Mackenzie, Mac really.”

“Mackenzie,” Lonny started again, “I know you’ve never met me, but I’ve been aware of you for several months because of your connection to Ms. Sabbith.”  If Mackenzie was surprised, she didn’t show it.  “I, personally, would like to oversee your protection until we’re sure that this has blown over.  The government guys think they’re entitled to you.  I’m here to show them they’re not.”

“But,” Mackenzie furrowed her brow, “what if my problem is him?”  She jerked a thumb toward Will, taking a flyer in the direction of normal banter.  Will’s face was still etched with some emotion that made Mac nervous; she couldn’t read his mind, but she was willing to bet that the thoughts racing around Will’s brain at that point had to do with the detached and decisive way that she had dispatched the CIA problem.  She felt a weight lift from her heart as relief washed over his face as her words registered in his brain.  Lonny grinned widely as he grasped the change of tone in the room.

“Who?  Shrimpboat over there?  Is he a problem for you, Mackenzie?  ‘Cause we can handle that in a hurry.”

“He’s okay, for now,” she said, offering a nonchalant shrug.  “But, it’s good to know if he gives me any trouble…”

Will bowed up.  “You should have seen the ass whipping I laid on a guy who was bugging Mackenzie.  He’ll never smell right out of that nose again.  And I’m pretty sure that it’ll take more than one paycheck to fix the mess I made of his teeth.”  Inside, he smiled at the memory, even though his shoulder still hurt like hell sometimes.  “I mean… it was self-defense.  But I defended the shit out of him.”

“Sure you did, Shrimpboat.  Sure you did.”

A chuckle rippled through the foursome and they codified the details of BlueNorth’s detail on Mackenzie.

 

 

Will and Mackenzie’s building was, blessedly, secure in nature, and once the McHale-McAvoy team was inside, they were free to go about the remainder of their Sunday evening unimpeded.  Mackenzie opened another bottle of wine, and Will poured himself a scotch.

“Well, we’ve had some excitement today,” Will began, once he could feel the warmth emanating from where his drink had settled.

“Yes,” Mac agreed slowly.  “It’s been a day.”

“What’s going on in that head of yours?”

She chewed her lip for a moment, stilling when Will reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear.

“Everything that I throw at you, Billy, you’re right there, taking it with a smile.  I feel like I crumble, and you’re there with the super glue.  I stumble, and you’re there to keep me from tumbling down.”

“Most of those things rhymed, Mackenzie.  You sure you’re not stoned?”  He smiled at her.  “Or maybe some wild cross between Carol King and Carly Simon?”

She frowned.  “I’m serious.”  Will could tell she meant her words, and he abandoned his humorous tact.

“I love you, Mackenzie.  Everything about you adds value to my life, color to my vision.  When I breathe and it’s your scent that I inhale, everything feels _right_.  Nothing’s going to shake that.  We’ll work through whatever comes our way.”  He took both of her hands in his and squeezed them gently.

“What happens when it becomes too much?  When you wake up, and you feel like it’s just work, and it’s not right anymore?”

“Do you think that’s going to happen, Mackenzie?  Really?  For you, I mean?  Because I’m all in.  Do you think you’ll regret it one day?”  She shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes.  Will wiped the tears from under her eyes.  He made a soothing hum, and crooned to her, “Hon, don’t cry.  You’re alright.  Everything’s alright.”

“I’ll never regret you, Will.  I’ll never regret this.”  She smiled at him, battling back the overwhelming emotions storming within her.  “It just all feels so fleeting.  One blink, and,” she snapped her fingers, “it could all be taken away.”

“Mackenzie, you’re safe.  I’m safe.  And we’ll stay that way.  Together.  Okay?”  She nodded at him and squared her shoulders, putting her trust in the two of them.  _Together._ Mac’s body slid closer to Will, angling itself toward him almost of its own accord.  She pressed a kiss to each of his palms and kicked her heels off to tuck her feet beneath her on the couch; his hands were, to her, a graphic representation of the strength, safety, and passion that their relationship was built on.  Mackenzie turned her face up toward Will’s; his lips curled into a wry smile.  “What’s that look mean?”  There was an edge of mischief to his voice, a hint of banter.

“What look?”  Mackenzie intentionally widened her eyes and raised the register of her voice.  One of her hands trailed up Will’s thigh, grazed over him, and trailed down the other thigh.  His eyes darkened, and Mackenzie worked to hide a smile.  “I think we should probably finish what we started before the power returned.”  She cupped him through his pants, gratified at the immediate response.  “Don’t you think?”

And then, it was as though they had both been unleashed.  Moments later, they were both completely unclothed; neither could identify who removed what from whom.  The unspent anxiety from the day and the energy from their overarching worries about Mac’s overseas experiences, as well as Nina’s involvement and the fight with Brian from which Will still wasn’t one hundred percent recovered, manifested themselves in fierce passion.  Their mouths tore at each other, battling not for dominance but for the space to pour the most of themselves into it; their hands were everywhere, touching every inch of the other, of themselves, feeling every never ending firing in overtime.

When Will slid a finger into Mackenzie, she arched into him.  A second finger joined the first, and Mackenzie gasped.  She heard herself begging—for him to be inside her, to possess her, to fully be with her.  He entered her, with intention, buried his chin in the crook of her neck, held her close, and focused on making her feel everything he was feeling.  She felt it building quickly, too quickly, and she willed herself to stop breathing, trying to stop the impossible, to draw it out.  It was one of those moments that in twenty or thirty years would be one that she remembered as a moment that she tried to stop time.  Mackenzie wanted—needed the tension, to feel it continuing to build, tighter and tighter, spiraling higher and higher toward the inevitable conclusion.  Somewhere, in the wings of her conscious mind, she heard him utter a gruff ‘Jesus, Mac’, but couldn’t surface to answer it.  Every nerve, each muscle was held at the ready, waiting for the point when her willpower or her oxygen ran out, waiting for her to shatter for him.

Mackenzie wasn’t ready for it to be over, but her fingers started to tingle, and then her thighs.  The edges of her vision blurred and stars flashed across her eyes.  The breath she had been holding was dispelled on a sound, rough and guttural, as her climax tore through her.  Powerless to hold it back any longer, Mac shuddered through it, felt the bliss of exquisite release wash over her.  Her eyes fluttered closed, and she wiggled her fingers and toes, gearing how long it was going to take to regain control of them.

The sensation of Will’s nails tracing gentle patterns across her stomach brought her focus back to the present.  His eyes were heavily lidded, his lips swollen from Mackenzie’s teeth tugging on them.  She felt him slide out of her, just a little, as she relaxed and her core loosened its hold on him, fluttering involuntarily every few seconds.  Her breath caught in her chest as the sensation, and she shifted her hips forward, taking him fully again.

“Where are you going?”  Her voice was deep, gravelly almost.

“You okay to keep going?”  Will’s voice was tight; he was exerting a massive amount of self-control to keep from driving into Mackenzie, twice, maybe three more times, in search of the same relief that she had found.  Mackenzie smiled a slow smile that revealed more to Will than a thousand words.  Before he could fully process the smile Mackenzie was giving him, he found himself on his back, Mackenzie straddling his hips, still joined.  She rolled her hips and found herself biting her forearm at the intense sensation.  Tears stung her eyes as she flitted back and forth across the pleasure/pain threshold.  Will hands anchored on her waist, between her hips and her ribs.  “Stop.  Breathe.  Give yourself a minute.”  His voice, still heavy with needing her, was also filled with the love and concern that made Mackenzie shake his grip.

“It’s not too much.  It’s just too much,” she gasped, moving on him again.  “I can’t explain, Billy.”  She leaned forward and captured his bottom lip between her teeth.  She tugged his mouth open, distracting his mind from the slow lift of her hips off of him.  When her tongue swept into his mouth, she crashed back down on him.  A simultaneous, indistinguishable moan sounded in the room.   Will’s hands carded in Mac’s hair, and he tugged her head back to expose the skin at her neck.  She ground down on him, holding him deep inside, clenching around him.  His hands locked on her hips, and his hips bucked up, racing toward his climax.  Mac’s eyes went wide with surprise as she came hard, unexpectedly.  The stark contrast to drawing out her first made the second take her breath away.  Will followed her seconds later, unable and unwilling to hold back any longer.

Mackenzie collapsed forward onto Will’s chest, breath coming in ragged gasps.   The sound of Will’s heart thudding rapidly in his chest beat into her ears as she rested on him, too spent to move.  As he softened within her and both Will and Mac’s breathing returned to normal, Mac bit the inside of her lip hard to hide a wince as he slipped from her, though she wasn’t entirely successful.  Will furrowed his brow.

“Did I hurt you?”  He sounded horrified.  She shook her head against him without lifting it off of his chest.  “Mackenzie,” he spoke quietly, “for fuck’s sake.”  At that, she did raise her head and look at him.

“I’m _fine_ , Billy.  Feeling a little tender isn’t the same as being hurt.”  She kissed him lightly and returned her head to its resting place on his chest.  “You would never hurt me.”  She yawned and heard him chuckle.  His hand tangled in her hair again, and she sighed contentedly.

“I thought the guy was the one who was supposed to pass out immediately following sex.”

“It’s not like I slept last night,” she mumbled, and then, “but you didn’t sleep either.”  She shifted to lay alongside him, though her head remained on his chest.  “Maybe it’s self-preservation.”

“Hey now, don’t really go to sleep on me now, kid.  We’re not sleeping on the couch again.”

“’m not a kid,” she murmured, almost fully asleep.  “Leave me.  I’ll be fine.”

And so, with a sigh that shook the windows and a loving smile, Will scooped his fiancé off the couch and carried her petite frame to their bed, pulling the sheet up over her before moving to brush his teeth before joining her.

“Who says sex doesn’t fix most things?” he said, to no one.

“Only good sex, Billy,” she responded, rolling over and fully surrendering to the sleep she needed.

Will chuckled.  He knew she was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm working hard on an outline to make sure that the rest of this piece ties up all of the loose ends and doesn't stray too far from the path we're on!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it, and you know I love hearing from all of you!!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy!!

Chapter 21

Nina Howard slid a large pair of sunglasses into place and tucked her hair under the large sun hat she had brought with her on instinct.  She wasn’t entirely sure what sort of a firestorm she had unleashed on Will and Mackenzie with the stories that she had run about Mackenzie’s assignments overseas, but she knew that the situation had spiraled out of her control.  _That’s why you should never take a free lead.  If you didn’t pay for it, you can’t trust it._   Leaving the west coast, she had felt invisible enough.  Landing in New York, though, Nina didn’t know who she might see or who might see her, and she didn’t want to be seen at all.  She had taken the red-eye in to meet her source, to get a feel for exactly what kind of pawn she had been made.  There were many things of which Nina was tolerant, questionable ethics among them, but being played for a fool wasn’t on her list of tolerable acts.  A black town car slid into view as she stepped through the exterior doors.  A small, self-satisfied smile played across her lips.  New York was her town, and it always seemed to run smoothly for her.  The west coast was a good place for her to make some easy money, create a new name for herself, and lick her wounds after the sting of Will’s quick recovery from their divorce, but it certainly wasn’t her home.  If she was being honest, she hadn’t intended the divorce to be permanent.  William Duncan McAvoy certainly checked all of the boxes on her ‘husband-criteria’ list, even if their marriage had lacked passion and the fulfillment that her friends claimed in their own relationships.  When she had filed for divorce, she had intended it to be a wake-up call, a cry for attention.  And then, Will had paid an exorbitant (even to her mind) amount of money, and before she could even try to explain her motives, the divorce was finalized.  While that move and the subsequent invasion of Mackenzie McHale into her penthouse apartment had effectively ruined her plan for reconciliation, Nina took pride in always landing on her feet; this time, that meant a move to the west coast with her handsome, younger boyfriend.   _Such_ _a pity--all looks and no brains.  Probably for the best that he walked away when he did, though._ What she hadn’t counted on was turning up pregnant; it had happened before she had filed for divorce, and she probably wouldn’t have made such a rash, attention-seeking overture if she had been aware.  Will’s money, her money since the divorce, had more than paid for full-time help, and Nina found that adapting to motherhood was easier than anticipated with someone else doing the late night duty.  Her figure had come back quickly; just 6 weeks after delivery, she was back in her pre-pregnancy clothes, though there was still lots of toning to be done.  For just one moment, Nina allowed her thoughts to slip into what it would have been like to have a baby with Will, to watch him raising her child.  There wouldn’t have been the pressure to get back to weight so quickly—she felt certain that Will would have embraced those changes as they came rather than fighting them.  As quickly as the thoughts clamored into her mind, Nina banished them away. _No sense in ‘what might have been's’, especially since he isn’t Will’s baby_ _._ She paused by the car door and waited for the driver to open it for her.  He offered her a look that she was still trying to decipher when she slid onto the seat.

“Hello, Nina.”  He smiled when she jumped, startled by his presence.

“Brian.”  Nina felt ice tinge her tone but made no effort to thaw her voice.  “I wasn’t expecting to see you until later.”

“I figured, since I was sending the car, I might as well catch a ride.”

“It’s nice to see that you’re as charming as ever.”  Sunlight shone briefly through the car window as they moved, illuminating Brian’s face.  “My god,” Nina gasped in horror.  “What happened to your face?”

“I had a run-in with McAvoy.”  His tone was flip, but the crook to his formerly straight nose and slightly drooping eyelid belied the intonation.

“Will?” Nina asked in disbelief.  “Will wouldn’t hurt a fly.  What did you do to him?”  She considered the permanent damage to Brian’s face for a moment before continuing.  “What did you do to Mackenzie?”

“A combination of events, really,” he shrugged.  “Now, why don’t you slip those shades off and tell me what prompted this cloak and dagger meeting.”  Nina raised an eyebrow, not at all content with the answer that had been provided to her.  Nonetheless, she removed the sunglasses and narrowed her eyes at the man next to her.

“What the hell have you gotten me into, Brenner?”

“Why Mrs. McAvoy, what on earth do you mean?”

“I didn’t take his name even when we _were_ married.  I’d appreciate you not attaching it to me now.  You know what I’m talking about.  What didn’t you tell me about this story?”

“Nina, I’m surprised at you.  Why not just bask in the glory of stories that garnered headlines from news agencies far larger than yours?”

“Because there’s more to this.  A lot more, if I don’t miss my guess.  I want to know what I’ve started.”

“Everything is under control.  Let me encourage you, again, to stop worrying about it.  It’s need to know.”  He paused, clearly wanting to build the effect of his words.  Nina stifled a snort of derision.  “And you don’t.”

“Brian, if they come to me, anyone at all—Will, Mackenzie, someone from State, Leona fucking Lansing—and they ask me who my source was, I’m going to give them your name before they can even finish the question.  Because I guarantee you that I don’t give a damn about the journalistic principles that you like to spout at me, not when I don’t feel like I can trust you as far as I can throw you.”  She reached forward to rap on the patrician between the driver and them.  When it slid open, she gave instructions.  “If you could pull over, at the next intersection.  Mr. Brenner is leaving.”  She saw his face go stony next to her and continued.  “And then back to the airport, please.”  The driver nodded silent acknowledgment, and after a moment, the car halted.

“Nina,” there was a growl of warning in Brian’s voice.  She cut him off.

“There’s nothing that is going to make me afraid of you.  You don’t know me, and you don’t have the power to pull anything you would need to make my life harder.  I don’t like being used, Brian, and any misguided sense of us against them that I had constructed when you offered me this lead has fully dissipated.”  She reached across the car and opened his door.  “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I won’t be a part of it.”

Brian slammed the car door with enough force to shake the vehicle and startle Nina.  She held no illusions; she was still in over her head, and she would make a call to her lawyer once she was back on the west coast.  But still, she was pleased with the small look of alarm that had widened Brian’s eyes before he donned a mask of impassive emotion.  For a moment, Nina scrolled through the contacts on her phone, entertaining the possibility of a quick tryst before catching her flight home.  Maybe she should drop in on the happy couple—hadn’t Will said that he had found her choker and would keep it at the apartment for her?  She wasn’t fully confident in her figure, and she didn’t want to see anything other than lust in a lover’s eyes.  Will and Mackenzie would ask more questions than she wanted to answer, and did she really want to see them at all?  With a firm shake of her head, Nina moved from contacts to her travel app and exchanged her later ticket for the next flight out.  Maybe she would give the nanny the rest of the day off. 

   
  


Mackenzie paced another circle around her office, trying to wake herself up; she had almost nodded off at her desk again.  In the few weeks since Lonny had become a regular player in their daily routine, Mackenzie’s sleep had been less sound.  Exhaustion and a general sense of being unsettled over something were becoming as much of a fixture for her as Lonny was.  She hadn’t heard from anyone on the government side, but she knew that Will and Lonny were both running interference and simultaneously digging for information about who had access to the leaked information that Nina had printed.  The fog of exhaustion didn’t seem to be lifting, so Mackenzie dialed the now familiar number on her phone, informing Lonny that she’d like to go for coffee.  Initially, Lonny had mandated that she send interns on coffee runs, wanting to expose her to the public as infrequently as possible.  Mackenzie had quickly chafed under the restraints, and Lonny had made concessions about coffee runs.  Mackenzie could genuinely have not felt more grateful to their staff and the slack that they had picked up in the last few weeks.  The show was as good as it had ever been, and the young staffer’s fresh perspective was helping to turn out provocative and relevant stories.

As she stepped out of her office to meet Lonny, Will was coming through the newsroom.

“Hey, I’m going to for coffee.  Want to come along?”

“Sure,” he shot her a smile with his response.

“Lonny’s on his way up, and we’ll go.”  The elevator dinged, and Lonny stepped into the room.  “Correction.  Lonny’s here.”

“Mackenzie, when are you and me gonna get busy, huh?”

“I’m flattered, but you’d crush me.”

“That’s true.”  He paused briefly.  “That’s happened before.”

“Dress up like a tailback, and he won’t be able to lay a hand on you.”  Will tried to muster a frown, but a smile crept over his face.  If they had to live under a protective eye for a little while, he was glad that their bodyguard was as amiable as Lonny.

“Shrimpboat!  If I wasn’t being paid to keep you alive…”

“You’re being paid to keep her alive."  He gestured toward Mackenzie.  "She just won’t let you kill me.”

Mackenzie laughed and squeezed Will’s arm as she came across the newsroom.

“Coffee, Mac?” Lonny asked, verifying their intended destination.

“Yes!  Please!  I can barely keep my eyes open!”

Once they were settled in the back of the vehicle, Will slid an arm around Mac’s shoulder.  Her head immediately listed against him.

“Hon, I’m starting to worry about you.  You’re exhausted all the time.”

“It’s just the stress, Will.  Logically, I know that having Lonny around full-time is overkill.  I know that since we called Tom out in Charlie’s office, they've pulled the tail; we’re not being followed.  Something just feels off, and I can’t pinpoint it.  I’m fine, honey.  I’m just tired.”  She considered her response silently for a moment before nodding once, to herself.  Once they had their lives back to themselves fully, everything would settle down, and she would sleep soundly again.

“Do you want me to stop looking into the leak?  I know we’re not working with them, but if it’s adding to your stress level, Lonny and I can lay off.”

“What happens when you find the leak, Will?”

“We plug it?”  She frowned at him, even though she heard the teasing in his voice.  “We run it.  It could be a major story.”

“I don’t want to be a story, Billy.”  There it was again, the sound of exhaustion in her voice.

“You’d only be a subplot in the overall story of negligence and overreach of the CIA.  We could turn it into a four-night series.”

“Is that really what you want to do with it?”

“I don’t know, Mac.  That’s what I’m using to justify all the digging that we’re doing.  I don’t know if we should run it, not to mention if we even legally could.”  He felt her nod against him.  “Let’s just see what turns up before we decide what path the story should take.”

 

 

Reese Lansing stepped into his mother’s office, anger surging in his eyes.  Leona smiled at him.  She had seen this look many times in the course of her son's life.  It usually meant he had bet on the wrong horse.

“It doesn’t make any sense!”

“What doesn’t, Reese?”

“These numbers!”  He vehemently shook the papers he carried.  “How is it possible that they’re _gaining_?”

“Maybe the general public is buying into ‘real’ news.”

“This is preposterous!  It doesn’t make sense!”

“You’re repeating yourself.  Maybe this is exactly what America needs right now.  Maybe they're finally coming around.”  Reese sputtered for a moment.  “I think you need to address why this is so infuriating to you.  And, while you’re at it, maybe re-examine what you’re charging for ad space during News Night.  It’d be a shame not to capitalize on the success while it’s happening.”

Reese turned on his heel and left, pondering his mother’s words.  He didn’t hate that they were popular; he hated that he’d bet against them.

Leona sat back at her office and smiled to herself.  Maybe Charlie was right.  She’d really enjoy being on the winning team this time, especially when her team was on the side of right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> XOXO to all of you!! I hope all of you in the US are safe from storms, floods, and fires. And to everyone outside the US, I hope you're all safe and well, too!!
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter-- let me know what you think!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not the longest chapter... but it's better than nothing, I hope!

Chapter 22

Mackenzie pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers and peered at Sloan over her reading glasses.  She tried not to sigh at the younger woman.

“Sloan, we’ve been through this.  There’s only so much time that I can give you in primetime.  We’ve got to cover _all_ of the news, not just economics.”  Sloan glared at her from the other side of the desk, maintaining her silence.  “What do you want me to do?  Seriously, you provide a solution, and I will take it to Will and Reese.”  She leveled a frustrated glare at Sloan.  “You quitting isn’t a solution, in case you were wondering.”

“I want time during the lunch hour.”  Sloan tried not to rush the words.  When she had walked into Mackenzie’s office twenty minutes ago waving her letter of resignation—really a blank piece of paper, but she’d wanted a prop—she hadn’t truly intended to quit.  She wanted the lunch break.  A noon to noon thirty slot.  Or maybe something in the last half of the hour.  “I’m not an idiot, Mac.  I know that we can only do so much with our—what did you call it?  short attention span theatre?—there’s only so much we can do.  I can be content with my 5 minutes on News Night.  But we’ve been here for long enough.  Numbers are good.  You should have seen Reese’s face when he saw them.  Priceless.  We’re proven now.  And, I want more.”

“Do you know what we have in that block right now?”  Sloan nodded with disgust and mumbled something about trash.  “Housewives watch that ‘trash’, Sloan.  The ad revenue in that block matters to the 44th floor.”

“I’ve seen the numbers.  I’ve looked at the ad buys.  I’ve studied the analytics on the demo that I’m going after.  This will work, financially.  Get me the slot, Mac, and I’ll prove it to you.”  Sloan took a breath, watched Mackenzie’s face, sensed that executive producer was on the ropes, and fired one more time.  “Wouldn’t you sleep better in that penthouse knowing that you had done your part in taking us one step closer to a civil discourse on dayside?”  Sloan raised an eyebrow at Mackenzie and offered her a small smile.

“I’ll take it to Will.”  Mackenzie sounded resigned.  Whether or not Sloan was right, and Mackenzie knew she was, any change to the dayside lineup was going to be a fight.  “Try to remember that technically, Will and I don’t make programming decisions, though, alright?  We’ll see Reese once we’ve got a plan of attack, but he’s the one who’s going to make those decisions.  Even Charlie doesn’t have as much pull on dayside as you would think.  It’s going to be a fight, an honest-to-god battle.”  Sloan nodded her understanding.  “Have those numbers ready for Will when he needs them, alright?”  Without a word, Sloan rose and laid a bound packet on the table.  Mac smiled for the first time since Sloan had swept into her office like a tornado.  “Confident in your argument?”

“Confident in being right.”

“I’ll take it to Will.”

“Thanks, Mac.” 

Mackenzie nodded once, and Sloan left her office.  The idea of fighting this battle with Reese wasn’t appealing.  The strategies of war dictated that there were a limited number of fronts upon which battle could be effectively waged simultaneously.  Personally, she believed that they were getting perilously close to reaching those limits.  She allowed herself the luxury of shutting her eyes and resting her head against the back of her chair, intending to unwind for the briefest of moments.  Restless sleep still haunted her, and work wasn’t providing any relaxation either.  Mackenzie jumped when the door to her office swung open a few minutes later; her eyes were still shut, and she had been well on her way to sleep.

“Bad time, Mac?”  Charlie paused in the doorway, mild concern and confusion creasing his brow.

“No, not at all.  I was just working through my meeting with Sloan.”  She pulled her reading glasses from her face and folded her hands in front of her on the desk.  “What’s up?”

“Can I be honest with you?”

“Of course.”  Mac felt herself tense.  Charlie sounded hesitant, which was unlike him.

“You look a little worse for the wear, Mackenzie.”  She opened her mouth to protest but was silenced by a look as Charlie continued.  “Ever since this nonsense came to light after the power outage, you’ve looked,” he paused, seeming to search for the right word, “peaked.”  _That’s the word that Nancy would use._ He felt a little smug in finding the word that described Mac’s appearance without being insulting.  “Are you sure there isn’t more to this CIA mess?  You can trust me, Mac.”  Charlie frowned when Mac shook her head.

“Really, Charlie.  Everything is fine.”  She sat up straighter and tried to offer him a reassuring smile.  “I’m just not sleeping well.”

“You’re sure?”

“Definitely!  Between Lonny being around and subsequently changing our routine and watching Will bend over backward trying to pin down the leak without involving me or the CIA teams, everything’s just a little off.”

“I didn’t know that you knew about that,” Charlie sounded genuinely startled as he sank down into a chair in front of Mac’s desk.

“I’m the master interrogator in our household.  Will thinks he’s so smart with his Brooklyn DA’s office, out-of-this-world conviction rate, but it only took two nights of being clumsily interrogated for me to figure out what his fishing expedition was in search of.”  She stopped and wrinkled her nose.  “I was trapped by the sentence.  Don’t tell Will that I landed on a preposition.  He’d never let me hear the end of it.”

Charlie laughed heartily and stared at Mackenzie for a long moment, searching her face for something.

“Just promise me that you’re taking care of yourself, Mac.  It’s not any of my business really, but I’m worried about you.”

“You’re very sweet, Charlie, but I promise.  There’s nothing to concern yourself with.  Either Lonny will go, or I will learn to sleep knowing that there are people keeping watch over us from the lobby.”  _And the general feeling of being unwell will go away once I’m sleeping better._

Charlie stood, smiled at Mac again, and left.  Mackenzie heard him greet several staffers with gusto, and she chuckled to herself as Charlie started asking them about their current assignments.  He cared deeply about them and about the show, and Mackenzie was grateful for it.  Once the ruckus died down, Mackenzie summoned the energy to lift herself out of her chair, and she made her way down to Will’s office.

“Do I look as though I’ve been grown somewhere damp and moldy?”  She posited the question without preamble.  Will’s head snapped up.

“Do you… do you what?” he responded carefully.

“Charlie just came to see me.  He said I look broken down or something like that.”

“Hon, you know you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in real life.  This is definitely not the first time that I’ve told you that.”

“You’re equivocating, Billy.”

“It’s been a long few months, Mac.  I think we’re both feeling a little like we’ve been rode hard and put up wet.”

“I didn’t ask how you were feeling—how we’re feeling,” she amended.  _Together._ It was her silent mantra.  “But that was a vivid piece of imagery.”

“Nebraska,” he said with a shrug.

“Mmhmm,” she said, with a wry smile.  “I asked if I _look_ like I’m feeling,” Mackenzie paused, searching for better descriptors than Will had used, “like you said,” she finished, a little bit lamely.  She watched him hesitate.  “Tell me.”

“You look… tired, Mackenzie.  You’ve got dark circles under your eyes that you can’t hide with makeup.  I know you’re not sleeping well.  Even when you drift off, you’re restless.  If it’s not working, to have Lonny around, I mean, we can do something else.  We could drop the whole thing, write it off, and pay Halliday a pile of money to file a lot of paperwork to keep them off your case for the next twenty years.”  He looked at her, tentative in his gaze.  “I wasn’t going to bring it up.  But hon, we’ve got do something different.  This isn’t sustainable.”  He watched her expression change and her face crumple.  He reached out and pulled her close.  “Damnit, Mac.  The only thing, and I do mean the only thing, that I’m sure of right now is us.  If we need to take a leave of absence and get the hell out of here, Sloan and Don can keep it afloat for a little while.”  Her eyes flashed fire, and she stepped back from him.

“I’m fine!”  She sounded near hysterics, even to her own ears.  “I’m exhausted.  That’s it.”  She carded her hands in her hair, biting back the rising wave of nausea that she was coming to associate with the lack of control that had begun to permeate her everyday existence.  “Our ratings have never been stronger.  We’re doing a good show… a show of which we can be proud.  And you want to hand it over to Paul Krugman Barbie and her Sweet Smell of Success Ken doll?  It’s OUR show.  We don’t run from problems.  We face them head-on.”  A small laugh slipped through her pursed lips.  “No pun intended.” 

Confusion clouded Will’s face as he tried to catch up to her humor.  Then, his eyes grew wide, and he drew in a sharp breath.

“Fuck, Mackenzie.  Did you really just make a joke about getting tossed headfirst over a railing?”

“Too soon?”

“I’m pretty sure it will always be too soon.”

“Even though I was the victim in this case?”

“I broke bones over it.  I feel like I’ve got a stake in it.”  She quirked an eyebrow at him.  “Alright, fine.  Make jokes.  But I won’t think they’re funny.”

“You really think we should leave?”  Mackenzie pivoted back to the real issue.  “Honestly?  Is that what you believe is the best course of action?”

“Of course not, Mac.  But, Christ, it’s killing me to watch you killing yourself over it.”

“Billy!” her tone was sharp, and he shut his mouth with a snap.  “I’m not killing myself over anything.  I’m exhausted.  We’re all exhausted.”

“Not like this, Mac.”  His tone was soft, and Mackenzie got the sense that he was speaking to her as a child and not as a partner.

“What, my liege, would satisfy you?”

“I’m not challenging you!”  Will’s shouted at her, and she took a step back.  “I’m just fucking worried!”

“You sound worried!”  Mackenzie allowed her tone to match his, all heated emotion and fire.  “You don’t sound at all like you’re yelling at me in your office!”

“Something is WRONG, MACKENZIE!”  He was roaring now, fear manifesting itself in volume.

“You think I don’t know that?”  Her voice also reached a crescendo, but it fell to just above a whisper as she continued.  “Something isn’t right.”  She stood in front of Will, weeks of her own concern spilling out into just a few words.  Her shoulders were squared, and she appeared, to Will, to be completely in control.  Will froze, shattered by her admission.

“Why didn’t you _say_ anything?”

“I didn’t want to worry you.”  Mackenzie’s cheeks burned, and she stared at the floor, feeling foolish, although genuine, in her reasoning.

“Hon,” his tone was gentle, and he reached for her, tugging her close, “you’re gonna be okay.  We’ll get you to a doctor, and we’ll figure out what’s going on.”

She nodded and met his eyes, finding only love and concern there.  She had been afraid of seeing reproach or disappointment that she’d kept her concerns from him.  _Not from Will.  Never anything but love from Will._ His fingers brushed her hair from her face and sought the knots in her neck, firmly working them until they loosened.  Her head lolled to one side, allowing him greater access to the most painful side her neck.  Slowly, almost painfully, he worked at her muscles.  Her eyes drifted shut, and she gave herself over to the sensation of his hands working their magic on her.  He was silent, completely focused on the task at hand.  As the tension began to drain her from her muscles, Mackenzie’s shoulders began to relax, began to slip down from the tense shrug that had been her standard pose for weeks.  He continued his work, expanding the area that his hands, now warm from the efforts, covered, and he felt mentally her slip away from him, felt her tune-in to the sensations he was providing her.  When Will’s lips dusted a series of light kisses across the top of her head, her eyes opened slowly, and she met his gaze.

“I’m pretty sure you just fell asleep while I was working on your neck.”  He kissed the corner of her mouth.  “And while I’m fully supportive of you getting some well-earned rest, it’s the middle of the afternoon, and I’m fairly certain we’re already late for a rundown meeting.”

“I wonder why they haven’t come for us,” she looked toward the door expectantly.

“Probably heard Mommy and Daddy fighting and decided that it was better to leave us alone.”

“And in this scenario, we’re…”

“The haggard and exhausted parents of a newsroom full of children who are barely old enough to drive at night.”

“Ah.”

“Discretion is the better part of valor, you know.”

“Mmmhmm.”  She stepped toward the door.  “Rundown meeting.”

 

 

Halfway through the rundown meeting, realization washed over Mackenzie, and she sat down hard in her chair.

“Mac?  Are you okay?” Jim had flown out of his chair and come to her side.  Will’s head snapped up from the email he had been writing on his Blackberry.

“Mackenzie?”

“I’m… I’m fine.”  She nodded dumbly and asked Will and Jim to continue the meeting without her.  Will rose to follow her, and she pointed to his chair, shaking her head at him and continuing out of the conference room.  “Late,” she whispered into the cool darkness of her office.  “Weeks late,” she confirmed to herself.  Mac’s eyes went comically wide.  “Oh, my.”  She sank down onto the couch behind her, thoughts racing a mile a minute. 

Was it really possible?  After all these years and all the history?  After Brian and after Peshawar, and after Nina and the CIA?  Mac leaned her head back, resting it against the wall of her office and allowed herself a few moments of reflection.  It had to have been the night that the power had gone out.  There had been something special about that night, even if she hadn’t been able in the moment to pinpoint what it had been.  This explained everything that had been going on with her—the exhaustion, the nausea, the general feeling of being ‘off’.  _Maybe I’m not sick…_

She tried the possibility out, once and then again, letting it become familiar on her tongue and in her mind.  After several minutes of silent processing, Mac stood, and with a certainty of purpose, headed back to the rundown meeting, feeling much more in control of her world.

 

 

As the broadcast ended at 9 pm, Will looked directly into the camera and addressed Mac.

“You okay, Mac?”

“Sure, why?” Mac was almost too quick to respond.

“You’re a little tuned out, and you didn’t yell at me once during the interview with the guy from the…”

 “The professor of climatology from Yale?” Mac interjected.

“Him,” Will confirmed.  “I baited you on purpose, just for a little fun, and you completely let me slide.  Herb had to take me to break.”

“Nice to see you having fun behind the desk again.  That’s what the news is missing:  fun.”  Will continued to stare down the camera, waiting for a less flip answer.  “I’m sorry.  I’m a little preoccupied.  And Charlie will have plenty to say about your interview.  There wasn’t any need for me to jump in.”

At that moment, as if on cue, Charlie burst into the control room.

“I swear to god, we’ll all be out on our asses if you guys don’t settle down and pander, just a fucking little, to Reese’s political cronies.  Why is that so fucking difficult?  Your numbers are great, and you can do anything.  What is it with you guys trying to burn the building down!”

Will flinched.  He couldn’t hear exactly what Charlie was saying through Mac’s headset, but he got enough of the volume and tone to understand that their boss was just this side of livid.  He spoke again into the camera.

“That was on me, Chief.  I was screwing with Mac.”

“On live air,” Jim added from the control room.  Will heard him through Mac’s mic and pursed his lips.

“Well, knock it off.”  Charlie turned on his heel and stormed out.  Mackenzie’s laugh crackled in Will’s earpiece and was soon joined by the sweeping laughter of the entire crew.  Will smiled and left the studio, feeling like he had accomplished his goal.  The mood was lightened, and he felt prepared to take his fiancé home for the night.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Genuine love and warm feelings to all of you who have stuck with this story through the lengthy breaks between chapters... real life just doesn't present free time!!
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter--- I'd love to hear your thoughts!


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Line Edit 11/15/2017: Sorry-- the note at the end said something about chapter 25, but this is 23, and I'm sorry for those who were confused! It's fixed now.
> 
> Greetings all--  
> Warm regards from abroad. I've been off the grid, and out of pocket for a few weeks. I hope everyone is well, and I hope you're still with me.
> 
> Here's our next installment! It'll be the last until after the new year, because this year, I'm celebrating the holidays by writing a stand-alone, holiday romance starring Will and Mac (an AU that is divergent from anything I've done before). I'm planning about 25,000 words (I've got 30K now, but it needs editing and cleaning). I so hope you all will enjoy it!
> 
> Love and all of the gratitude for all of you who keep sticking around,  
> C

Chapter 23

Will’s feet were crossed on the coffee table, and he watched with amused interest the rugby match playing out on the screen in front of him.  Charlie had used the word “scrum” one too many times, and Will had found that he wanted to better understand the foreign sport that was changing Charlie’s vernacular.  These guys were tough as hell, and Will felt relatively certain that even Lonny wouldn’t want to come up against them in an alley.

“Mac?” he called over his shoulder into the kitchen.  Mackenzie was perched on the kitchen counter, now reading, cover to cover, a cookbook that she had been flipping through looking for something enticing to cook for dinner on their day off.  She acknowledged Will with a small noise.  “Need any help in there with dinner, hon?”

Mackenzie looked around the still spotless kitchen and furrowed her brow.

“How’s takeout sound?”  She felt her nose crinkle as she called the question into the living room.  She really _had_ intended to cook.  The damn chapter on developing flavors by region was just _enticing_.  She buried a sigh as she heard the TV shut off and Will leave the couch.  She offered an apologetic smile as he came into the kitchen.  “I got caught up reading this silly cookbook,” she offered with a shrug.  Will chuckled and pulled a glass from the cupboard.

“You’re the only girl in the world who could get caught reading about cooking rather than actually cooking.”  He poured himself a scotch and offered her a sip, shrugging at her with bemusement when she shook her head.  “You want me to make something?”  Mac’s chin came up defiantly; Will raised both hands and the glass of scotch in a gesture of surrender.  “Not that you can’t, hon.  Just trying to be helpful.”  He took a long sip of his drink and considered her.

“No.  I don’t want you to cook.”  She put both hands on her hips and set the cookbook aside, petulance coloring her tone.  “I’m very capable of making dinner.”

“I just said that.”  He stepped closer to where she was still sitting on the counter, making his way in between her legs.  She bent her face to his and kissed him, tasting the scotch on his breath.  “I know you’re fully capable of cooking, Mackenzie,” he said, mouth against hers.  He caught her bottom lip between his and tugged on it lightly.  “I was just offering,” he pulled his face back from hers before continuing, “in case you wanted to keep studying that cookbook.”  The quip landed as intended, and Mackenzie laughed.

“Are you starving?  We could send out.”

“I’m not ‘starving’, but dinner is definitely on my agenda.”  He lifted her off the counter and set her in front of him.  His arms wound around her waist, and he pulled her hips into alignment with his.  “Unless you’ve got a better idea.”  He wagged his eyebrows with mock suggestion, and she laughed again.

“You—go back to your sports.  Let me make dinner.  An hour.  Tops.”  She smiled encouragingly and made a brief ‘shoo’ motion with her hands.  Will offered her a pained expression.

“Are you kicking me out of the kitchen?”

“I am if you’re going to keep making overtures of a sexual nature in my general direction while I’m trying to implement all of the things I just learned from that book.”

“I thought you _liked_ my sexual overtures!”  He pretended to pout, enjoying teasing her, more than he could verbalize.

“I DO!”  She laughed the words, putting her weight behind pushing Will out of the space.  “But if you stay in this kitchen and seduce me, it will be midnight, and we’ll be calling out for Chinese.  Again.  And, if I have to hear you whine to Jim one more time about only being fed take-out…”  She let the unfinished threat trail off.

“Fine,” he turned and kissed her nose as he acquiesced to being removed from the kitchen.  “I’ll be in there.”  He pointed to the living room.  “Sports-ing.”

“Sports-ing?”

“Seemed like the kind of sports term you would understand,” he tossed over his shoulder.  Mackenzie laughed again and turned back to her cookbook.

 

An hour later, almost to the minute, Will strolled into the kitchen, on the pretense seeking a refill on his drink.  Something smelled heavenly, to his mind, and he wanted an advance peek at the forthcoming meal.

“Buy you a drink, hon?”  He poured his own and instinctively reached for a glass for her.

“Not right now, Billy, but thanks.”

“Are you suddenly on the wagon, Ms. McHale?”  There was teasing in his tone, but Mackenzie blanched at the question.  She had a doctor’s appointment scheduled for late in the week, and she wasn’t ready, quite yet, to offer her suspicions to Will.  She was saved from responding, as Will changed tracks.  “Marry me.”  It was a statement, not a question.  Mac’s eyebrows shot up, and she wiggled the fingers on her left hand at him.

“Haven’t we already covered this?”

“No, I mean soon.”  He moved slowly toward the stove and his fiancé.  “I want to be able to call you ‘Mrs. McAvoy’, at least here, even if you don’t change your name.”

“That’s not a reason to get married.”

“It’s just one of the many reasons.”  She pursed her lips and made a ‘mmmm’ sound.  Will continued, “If we keep waiting, you’ll keep finding more women to stuff into pink taffeta, and I really don’t have enough friends to keep up.”

“The bridesmaids are wearing Vera Wang,” Mackenzie murmured absently, focused on the pans on the stove in front of her.

“Can Vera Wang make that many dresses?”  At that, Mackenzie did turn and raise an eyebrow at him.  He changed tacts.  “Wouldn’t it be nice to…”  He paused, rethinking his argument.  “Mackenzie, I’m yours.  You own me.  I just want us to be…” he tried several different words in his head before he landed on the one he wanted, “settled.”

“I’m not changing my mind, Billy.”  She kissed him lightly and turned back to her culinary endeavor.  “I love you.  That’s forever.  We can get married at City Hall or at St. Patrick’s in the company of everyone we’ve ever met, and it will mean the same thing.  My heart is at home with you.  Do you really want it to be today?”

“I don’t think we could get a license for today.”

“If you want to get married at City Hall in the next two days, you’re going to have to be the one to call my parents and explain to them why they weren’t in attendance at their daughter’s wedding.”

Will slid his arms around her waist, pulling her back into his chest, and he kissed the back of her neck.

“How many bridesmaids are we looking at, currently?”

“Nine.”

“Nine bridesmaids?”

“My sisters.  Your sisters.  Maggie, Sloan, Shelia, and Diane.”

“Who’s Sheila?”

“My brother’s wife, Shelia.  You’ve met her.”  She was starting to sound agitated, and Will kissed the tension from her neck again before catching her earlobe between his teeth and tugging it lightly.  Mackenzie sagged back against him, savoring the moment.  He ran a thumb down her jawline and murmured in her ear.

“And who’s Diane?”

“Sawyer.”  She responded, voice deep, still suspended in the spell of Will’s touch.

“Nine bridesmaids is madness.  The amount of time it’s going to take eighteen people to walk down the aisle… and are you telling me Diane Sawyer is gonna put on a dress with puffy shoulders?”

“The bridesmaids are wearing Vera Wang, Billy.”

“And we’re back where we’ve started…”

“I’m going to marry you, Will.”  She enunciated each word with precision.  _Sometimes he just needs to hear me say it._   “We can set a date.  We can book a church.”

“Think of the photos.”  He said, offering an indulgent smile.  “And the flowers, and the people.”

“Exactly.  We’re doing our part to prop up the local economy.”  With a flourish, she flipped the burners on the stove to low and turned in Will’s embrace.  “Dinner’s ready.”

“Thank god.  If I had to wait much longer, I was going to have to have _you_ for dinner.”  Mackenzie gave him a wicked smiled and widened her eyes as she draped her arms over Will’s shoulders.

“Dinner’s going to be a while…”

Will returned the smile.  Lust for Mackenzie darkened his eyes, and his mouth captured hers in a demanding kiss.

 

A while later, Will padded into the kitchen, barefooted and wearing only boxers.  He lifted the lids off of the pans on the stove and took a deep breath, inhaling the scents of the food and searching for any notes of acridity that may have been burned into the food while he was burning for Mac.  He smiled when the only aromas were pleasant ones and served dinner.  He was just lighting a candle on the table, a small romantic gesture but one that had proven effective with Mackenzie, as she entered the room.  She smiled at him as she took in the sight and tossed a t-shirt in his direction.  He caught it with practiced skill.

“This looks lovely, Billy.”

“You did all the heavy lifting, hon.  I just put it on plates and set the table.”  He poured two glasses of wine and set the bottle on the table.  “It smells great, Mac.  You should read cookbooks more often.”  Will added two glasses of ice water to the table and turned toward her.  Mackenzie was wearing one of his button-down shirts—they were a favorite of hers as the evening hours drew on—and her hair was damp around her shoulders, clean after a quick shower.  “You’re just beautiful.  Do you know that?”  She flushed and smiled at him.  “Let’s eat.”

Halfway through their meal, Mackenzie cocked an eyebrow at Will.

“What were you watching earlier?”

“While you were cooking?  Rugby.”  Will watched her face for recognition, and while she clearly understood the word, there was no recognition on Mac’s face related to the experience of the sport.  “This you’re not familiar with?  Soccer is a cultural norm for you, but rugby doesn’t compute?”  She shook her head.  “Those guys are serious.  They make American football players look like babies.”

“The way you Nebraskans feel about… everyone who isn’t from the Midwest?”

“You lost the thread of that, huh?”

Mackenzie popped another bite of dinner into her mouth and began to speak around it, “Rugby is more… “  She paused when her nose wrinkled of its own volition.  A rosemary leaf; she hadn’t added much, and this was the first she had tasted it during the meal.  The scent felt pungent in her nose.  Her stomach turned almost immediately, and she felt the color drain from her face.

“Mac…”  Will was out of his chair and around the table in front of her instantly.  “Hon?”

Mackenzie focused on fighting down the rising taste of bile, breathing deeply in through her nose and forcing it out through pursed lips.  _Keep it down.  Keep it down._ She fought with all of her willpower, but there was nothing to be done for it.  Rosemary was simply not on the list of approved foods at this point.  Mac bolted from the table, around Will, and scrambled for the bathroom.  She hit her knees in front of the toilet and tried to keep the tears in her eyes from spilling over as her stomach emptied itself.  She was aware of the feeling of Will’s strong hand between her shoulder blades, rubbing soothing circles and of her hair being swept out of her face and held gently back.  Once it had passed, Mackenzie sat back on her heels and rested her cheek against the cool marble of the wall.  An instinctive whimper crossed her lips when his hand withdrew from her back; he mumbled soothing sounds, and she heard the water running.  As Will sank down onto the floor next to her, Mackenzie’s world was beginning to put itself to rights, and she was able to open her eyes without feeling dizzy.  Will passed her a damp, cool cloth, and she draped it around the back of her neck.

“Thanks.”  Her voice was rough from the exertion of being sick.  Will didn’t respond, and after a moment, she made herself focus on him.  He was holding a tampon—something that generally was stored in the closet away from the towels but that Mac had relocated to the guest bathroom closet in an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ mentality.  She could tell from the stare he was giving it that he knew.  “Billy,” she began, but he spoke over her.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”  He sounded confused and concerned.

“I—I…” she searched herself for an answer that hadn’t been forthcoming since the rundown meeting when she had realized.  After the home test, and after she had made the doctor’s appointment to confirm, she had again tried to find the words to tell him.  “I wasn’t sure.”

“You’re not sure?”  The skepticism he felt crept into his voice, though he tried to keep his tone expressionless.

“I wasn’t sure.”

“And you’re sure now?”

“Relatively.”

“Mmm.”  The sound didn’t provide Mackenzie any insight into Will’s thought processes.  “Relatively?”

“I haven’t been to the doctor.”

“But you’ve got an appointment?”

“Yes.”

“Mmm.”  He made the sound again, slightly more frustrated this time.  _It’s like pulling fucking teeth._   “Why didn’t you SAY something?”

“I don’t know.”

“That’s not an answer.”  He looked at her for the first time since joining her on the floor.  “Do you want this?”

“Of course, I do!”  Mackenzie instantly felt protective of their baby.  “How can you ask me that?”

“Because we’re sitting on the floor of the guest bathroom, Mackenzie.  We’re sitting on the floor, and the only reason I’m in the loop is because you can’t keep your dinner down.”  His gaze shifted to his outstretched feet.  “And, I thought that this was something we were moving toward.”  The pauses between his sentences were growing in length.  “Until we were sitting on the floor of the guest bathroom, and you didn’t tell me.”

“Do you want this?”  Mac’s words weren’t more than a whisper.  She drug in a deep, shaky breath, finally having arrived at what had been holding her back from telling him.

“Fuck,” he spoke softly.  “Is that what’s going on here?”  She stared at him, needing more.  “You don’t think I’m all in for this?”

“We said we would wait.”

“We said we could wait.”

“That seems like a semantics issue.”

“You’re pregnant, Mac?”  He asked the question outright, needing a conversational reset.  She nodded, not trusting her voice.  “We’re having a baby, hon.”  His fingers tangled with hers, the physical contact reassuring to Mackenzie more than words could in that minute.  “How could I not want this?”

She laughed then, a happy sound filled with relief and hope.  Will squeezed her hand, still clasped in his.  Her head rested against his shoulder, and they sat in silence, both lost in thoughts of the future.  The shrill ring of the landline phone burst the tentative peace of the moment.  They both jumped a little.  Will rose quickly, and dropping a kiss on the top of Mackenzie’s head, he headed for the kitchen.  Mackenzie stayed where she was but focused on Will’s voice.

“Charlie.”  A tense pause.  “Fuck.  Alright.  We’ll be in.”  And then Will was beside her again, his arm falling tenderly around her shoulders.  “We’ve got to go in.”

“It’s Sunday.”  _And we’ve not nearly finished this conversation._

“I know.”

“What’s happened?”

“He didn’t want to say over the phone, but he intimated that he’s got a lead on the leak.”  She nodded, a little bit blandly, but made no move to get up.  “Mackenzie, hon?”  Will’s voice was full of understanding.  “It’s going to be alright.  We’re having a _baby_.”  There was reverence in the word.  “Everything else will take care of itself.”  He stood and gently tugged her to her feet.  “For now, we’ve got to go to the office, just for a while.”

“This isn’t how I wanted this to go.” 

“I know, Mac.”

“I wanted a sonogram, and candles, and lots of banalities.”  Mackenzie looked up, stared hard into Will’s eyes.  “I wanted joy.”  Will’s eyes grew teary, and he dropped his forehead to rest against hers.  After a moment, Mackenzie pulled back and caught Will’s eyes again.  “Just say what you’re feeling.”

“You’re everything to me, Mac.  And having a family with you…” he trailed off, voice broken with emotion.  “I think joy is an understatement, hon.”

Mackenzie’s eyes also filled with tears, and she turned her face upward to kiss Will.  They stayed locked in each other’s arms while the emotional storm raging around them quieted.

“Alright.  The office.”

Mackenzie took Will’s hand, and together they left the guest bathroom, headed for the uncertain news that awaited them at AWM headquarters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there's Chapter 23.
> 
> Thoughts?
> 
> (Any thoughts on the holiday story I'm planning?)
> 
> xox


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the final installment of our tale... a short and sweet epilogue will follow, but not today.

Chapter 24

“So, it’s isolated?  Just the two of you?”

“And the men that he got to talk.”

“How?”

“You’d be amazed what you can accomplish with a little bit of money.  That was his line.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“In the city, somewhere.  I’m not sure.”

Will felt a vein in his temple start to pulse as he, Mac, and Lonny approached Charlie’s office.  He knew that voice; he’d been married to that voice.  Mackenzie stopped just short of the door.

“I need to splash some water on my face before I go in there.”  Will could tell from the suddenly exhausted expression the passed over Mackenzie’s features that she, too, had recognized Nina’s voice.  Lonny moved to accompany Mackenzie to the restroom, but she waved him off.  “Do you think there’s a CIA strongman waiting in the women’s restroom on the 44th floor of the AWM building on the off chance that I might stop by?”  Lonny opened his mouth to respond, but Mackenzie’s glare cut him off.

“Four minutes.”  He returned her stare.  “Four minutes, and then I’m coming in after you.”  Mackenzie rolled her eyes.

“I’m just going to splash water on my face.”  She turned and made her way to the women’s washroom.

 

Will pushed open the door to Charlie’s office and froze at the sight of Nina.  The edges of a deep bruise peeked out from the edges of the scarf around her neck, and she looked both pale and thin, too thin.

“Jesus, Goldie!  What happened?”  The pet name slipped from his lips without a thought as he took in the sight before him.

“Hey, Will,” Nina smiled softly at him, soaking in the genuine care in Will’s voice like a dry sponge.  “I owe you an apology, you and Mackenzie.”

“Are you alright?”  Will took a knee in front of her and stared into her face.

“I’m alright.”  She looked at Charlie, who nodded to her.  “It’s all gotten out of hand, and I never intended for it to be this way.”  Will’s face betrayed his confusion.  “I was getting my information from Brian, Will.”

Will flinched as though he had been hit and turned his head to Lonny, who was already turning to leave the office in search of Mackenzie.

“He did that to you?”  Will gestured to the scarf at Nina’s neckline.  She nodded once. 

“Brenner’s completely unspooled,” Charlie interjected.  “Nina’s already been to see the authorities.  The FBI has taken ownership of the case, and she’s given them Brenner in exchange for immunity.”  Will nodded, trying to take it all in.

 

Mackenzie dried her face with one of the linen towels in the washroom.  _The 44 th floor really does have it made.  _She glanced at her watch and decided that she’d better join the meeting before Lonny came looking for her.  The sound of the door locking startled her, and she whirled to face the exit.

“Brian?”  The sight of him startled her, but the permanent damage to his face startled her even more.  _He and Will had to have been battling to the death._   She suppressed a small shudder.

“Hello, Mackenzie.”

“What are you doing here?”  Instinctively, she knew that the situation had escalated to a point far beyond her control.  She worked to keep a calm, impassive expression on her face as she took in the man between her and the exit.

“I wanted to see you before they take me in.”  He smiled mirthlessly at her confused expression.  “Nina gave me up, and the FBI is pretty pissed.”  He shrugged.  “I’m going away for a while.” 

He opened and closed his fists several times and shuffled forward several steps, closing on her.  Mackenzie’s eyes went wide, utterly horrified.  Both hands instinctively moved to protectively cover her stomach; her breath caught in her throat, and she continued the brush of her hands down her skirt, appearing for all intents and purposes like a nervous tick in smoothing her clothes.  _I’ll be damned if I let him have that power._

“It was you?  The whole time?  How?”

“It’s amazing what money will buy, Kenzie.”

“But why?”  The wrongness of the situation was starting to settle over her.  “I don’t… why?”

“I’ve seen the way you look at him.  For years, I’ve watched.  The entire time we were together, when we were engaged.  Jesus.  And it was the same for Nina.  You two really fucked us.”

“I know you’ll never believe me, Brian, but I didn’t know.  I knew we weren’t perfect, but being with Will,” she paused, carefully weighing her words, trying to buy herself some time. “I didn’t know until I knew.  And that wasn’t while we were together.”  If she knew Lonny at all, he had a 4 minute timer running the moment she walked away from them.  She just had to keep this going for another minute or so.

“I don’t really give a fuck about your lies at this point.”

“You sound tired, Brian.”

“I am.  This whole thing has been a shit-ton of work to orchestrate.”  He wasn’t even looking at her now, staring, absently, at the wall behind her.  “I didn’t think Nina would crumble so easily.”  Now, he did meet her eyes, and Mackenzie was startled by the cold detachment she saw there.  “I hate underestimating people.”  He took another step toward her, and she automatically retreated another step coming up hard against the wall.  “Why, Mackenzie!  I’m surprised at you.  Where’s that overly-confident woman that’s been striding around the city for the last few months?  Not so tough without your protectors, are you?” 

He laughed then, at the same moment that Mackenzie saw the door strain against its lock.  Mackenzie heard Lonny swear so violently that she felt sure the devil himself cringed.

“And the angels wept,” she finished her thought out loud, biting back a small smile; she had kept the conversation going for long enough, and now the cavalry was here.  Brian, having missed the sounds, narrowed his eyes at her.  “I am sorry, truly, that you were hurt by my relationship with Will.  You know that we would never have worked, though, even if there was no such man as Will McAvoy.”  She did smile then, as she watched the lock turn and the door swing open silently.  “You’re just too big of a douchebag to be my forever.”  Brian’s face went red, and he made half of a step toward her before Lonny brought him to the floor in a horse collar tackle.  “I’m pretty sure that’s an illegal tackle, though,” Mackenzie said to Lonny as she stepped over the restrained Brian and into the corridor.

She collided with the solid form of Will, who had been barreling toward the restroom.  He caught her up in his arms, pressing kisses to each part of her that came past his lips.

“You’re alright?”

Mackenzie stepped out of his grasp and turned in a quick circle, demonstrating her fitness.  He seemed overly panicked, and it took her only a second to fit the pieces together.

“I’m fine.”  Will pulled her close again.  “Is Nina alright?”

“A little worse for the wear, but no permanent damage.”  They moved toward Charlie’s office.  “Charlie’s with her now.”

 

Several hours later, the drama of the afternoon seemed to have settled.  Brian had been turned over to FBI custody, nose broken once more.  Lonny had offered Brian a sorrowful look as he was led away. 

“I told you not to try anything stupid.”

Mackenzie had provided Charlie with the phone number for Tom, her CIA contact, and given Charlie the go-ahead to bring him up to speed on the situation.

“You should feel free to forget that you ever heard of Mackenzie McHale,” Charlie had said as he ended the call.

Nina had apologized effusively to both Will and Mackenzie; Mackenzie had accepted much more readily than Will, who finally came around to the idea of forgiveness at the urging of his fiancé.  At Mac’s insistence, Nina had produced pictures of her son; Mackenzie had stared at the photos with wonder, and Will had watched Mackenzie with a similar expression.  Each time the newest detail of their life reoccurred to Will, he had to fight an overwhelming urge to whoop and kiss Mackenzie senseless. 

Once the loose ends of leaks and forgiveness had seemed to be tied up, Charlie had arranged for one of the BlueNorth cars to take Nina to the airport so that she could be returned to the west coast.  Lonny, after awkwardly accepting a warm hug from Mackenzie and shaking Will’s proffered hand, had bid the group a good afternoon and returned to the BlueNorth offices to wrap up the paperwork associated with their case.

And so, it was just the three of them, Charlie, Will, and Mackenzie.

“I’m glad it’s done,” Charlie said pouring himself a bourbon and tipping the bottle toward Will, who nodded.  “Mac?  Can I pour you a drink?”

“No, Charlie.  Thanks though.”  Charlie’s eyes narrowed, and he stared hard at Mackenzie, who was exchanging a meaningful look with Will.

“You’re looking less run down, Mac.  Are you feeling better?”

“Much,” came the guarded reply.

Charlie made a sound in the form of a harrumph and handed Will a glass.

“To far less drama in the coming years,” he said, saluting Will and Mackenzie. 

 

The following Monday afternoon, Sloan walked into her office and did a double take.  For effect, she checked her nameplate on the door.

“Yeah.  It’s my office.”

“I’m just here,” Reese said, from his position, flat on his back on her couch.

“You alright?”

“I’m hiding.”

“From who?”  Sloan sat on the arm of the sofa and stared down at her sometimes lover and always friend.

“Will.  And Charlie.”  He sighed.  “I’m hiding from Will and Charlie.”  Another heavy sigh.  “And really, it’s your fault that I’m hiding from them.”  Sloan made a righteous squawk, but Reese continued over her.  “Look, if I give you half an hour in the lunch block, will you call them off?  They think you’re serious about going back to CNN if you don’t get what you want.”

“I am,” she said quietly.  At her words, Reese snatched the cloth that was covering his face off and sat up.  “I want to make a difference.”

“If I give you the block and 15 in the 4 o’clock hour, will you sign a five-year contract?”

“I’ll sign a three-year contract.  That’s what Will and Mackenzie are on.  I wouldn’t stay without them.”

“Fine.”  He didn’t look pleased, but Sloan knew she could have gotten him down to a two-year deal.  “Three years.  Standard raise and bonus structure.”

“Done.”  She stared hard at him for a moment before continuing.  “You were worried because you thought I was leaving?”

“You’re a brilliant economist, Sloan.  Of course, we want to keep you.”

“ACN wants to keep me.”  She stood.  “Got it.”

“Fuck.  Sloan.”  Reese got to his feet.  “You know what I meant.”

“I do.  Heard.  Loud and clear.”

“I tried to talk about…” Reese struggled for the right words, “us.  Weeks ago.  You literally wouldn’t stay in the same room.”

“That’s because ‘us’ isn’t a thing.”

“So, what the fuck are you looking at me like that for?”  She raised her eyebrows at him.  “Obviously, I want to keep you here!”  His volume level was rising, and Sloan reached to close the door.  “So, you tell me how you can look at me like _that_ and be offended that ACN wants to keep you in the same breath that you’re telling me that there isn’t an ‘us’.”  He tossed air quotes around the words, completely exasperated.

“I’m bad at this.”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t know how to be what we want without blurring a lot of ethical lines.”

“Have you met Will and Mackenzie?”  Reese stepped toward Sloan.  “Or Will’s assistant and that producer Mackenzie brought back?  How about Gary and literally every single female intern?”  Sloan nodded.  “Obviously, that’s an area where we need improvement.  So, as long as the fence is down, maybe we should jump it before HR gets wise.”  He put his hand out to her.

“Okay.”  She laid her hand on his, finding that the expression on his face, a mix of relief and adoration, made her happier than she could have anticipated.

“So, we’ll go tell Charlie?”  He offered her a hopeful look.

“About…”

“Your contract.”

“Because you’re afraid that I’ll change my mind, or because you want Charlie off your back?”

“Why can’t it be both?” he said, confidence returning in the face of having accomplished both of his missions.  She smiled at him, nodded once, and followed him to the elevators.

 

Reese pushed the door to Charlie’s office open and allowed Sloan to pass in front of him.  He followed her in, stopping short behind her; she had frozen, taking in the sight of Charlie before her.  His eyes were closed, and his head was tipped back against the chair.  He was pale; a thin sheen of sweet beaded on his brow and on his upper lip.  Reese didn’t miss the look of horror on Sloan’s face as she stared at her mentor.

“Charlie!” Reese spoke sharply.  Charlie’s head jerked upright, but it took a moment for his eyes to focus on the pair in front of him.

“What… can I do for you?”  He sounded a little choked.  Reese frowned deeply at him,

“Are you alright?”  Reese was already on his phone, texting his mother.  She was probably the only person in the world who could boss Charlie around effectively.

“I’m fine.”  He cleared his throat and sat straighter.  “What kind of crisis has brought you two to my office today?”

“Reese gave me the block I wanted.  I’m going to sign a three-year contract.”  Sloan returned to wide smile that Charlie gave her.

“Good.  That’s very good.”  He tossed two aspirin back and chased them with bourbon from the tumbler on his desk.

“You sure you’re okay?”  Sloan sounded genuinely concerned.  He waved her off with a tight smile.  _Must look as bad as I feel._

“Just a little under the weather.  I’ll be fine.”

Millie came rushing into the office, obviously trying to get in ahead of the person crossing the lobby.

“Mrs. Lansing is on her way in,” Millie said without further greeting or preamble. 

Charlie cut his eyes at Reese, who shrugged without additional comment.  Leona strode into the room, pausing only a breath to take in the scene before her.

“Let me see you walk across the office,” she commanded, her imperious tone motivating Charlie to stand.  He took two steps before gripping the back of a chair, shutting his eyes, and swaying in place.  “Goddammit, Charlie!”  Leona was pissed; Charlie knew that tone, and he chose to keep his eyes closed.  “How long has this been going on?”

“Few days,” he said, capitulating to the impending interrogation, but no questions followed.  When Charlie opened his eyes, Sloan was by his side, and Leona was on the phone.

“Have my car out front in five.”  Before Charlie could process her words, Leona had disconnected and begun a second call.  “Nancy.  Leona.  I’m taking Charlie to Sinai.”  Charlie opened his mouth to protest and way quieted by Sloan’s hand on his arm and the gentle nod of her head.  “No, he’s mobile.”  Leona looked him up and down with sharp assessment.  “But he doesn’t look like he will be for long.  We’ll meet you there.”

 

A pall hung over the bullpen.  Word had spread quickly of Charlie’s swift departure from the building, and tensions were running high.  It was after 6pm when Mackenzie’s phone had finally rung.  She walked into Will’s office still holding her mobile.

“Nancy’s just called.”  Will’s head came up, and he stared at his fiancé, his eyes full of unasked questions.  “He’s going to be fine.  They’re going to keep him for a day or so, but he’s going to be fine.”  Having gotten through the critical information, Mackenzie took a deep breath before continuing.  “Will, I want to go see him.  We’re just throwing to packages and pre-tapes all show.  Can’t we have Terry cover it?  Just for tonight?”  By the time she had finished, Will was already on the phone.  It took only a moment to arrange everything with DC, and they were out the door minutes later.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Will said, as the car door shut behind them and the vehicle slid into motion.  “I want to be there with him.  With Nancy.”

“Sounds like Leona’s there, too.”  Will nodded at her words, accepting the fact without thought.

“She’s family.”

“Yeah, she is.”

 

They held hands as they wound through the hospital corridors in search of Charlie’s room.

“Why is it always like being in a damn maze to find anyone in a hospital?” Will groused.

“We’d probably understand it better if we worked here.  The people in uniforms seem to do alright.”

The numbers on the doors started to move in the right direction; Will and Mackenzie stopped outside the room that seemed right.  Mackenzie double checked her phone.

“This should be it.”  Mackenzie watched the color drain from Will’s face.  “Hey,” she tugged on his hand, waiting for him to meet her eyes, “he’s going to be fine.  We’re here.”  Her thumb traced soothing circles across the top of his hand.  Will swallowed visibly.

“It’s… that’s my father in there, Mac.”

“I know, Billy.”  She searched for the right words.  “He’s not going anywhere.”  Will stared at the door, not making any move to go in.  “He knows you love him.”  Will’s eyes jumped back to hers.  She nodded encouragingly at her fiancé.  “He does.”

Will gripped her hand fiercely and knocked twice on the door before pushing it open.  Mackenzie’s eyes first found Nancy, perched on the side of Charlie’s bed, clutching an insulated container of ice chips.  It was the standard what-else-can-I-do posture, standard protocol for a hospital, and Mackenzie’s heart went out to Nancy immediately; she offered her a small smile and continued into the room, half a step behind Will. 

Leona was half perched on the window sill, ankles and arms crossed, looking a proprietary mix of concerned and still completely pissed; it was a distinctly Leona expression.

“Hey kids.”  Charlie was the first to speak.  He transitioned from a cheerful smile to a furrowed brow in the span of a breath.  He double checked the clock on the wall.  “Shouldn’t you guys be getting ready for a broadcast?”

Will shifted his weight from one foot to the other, suddenly uncomfortable in his decision to pass of the broadcast.

“We handed off to DC for the night,” Mackenzie said brightly.  “It was a lot of packages and pre-tapes, and we decided to pull the plug for tonight.”  She stepped forward and lightly squeezed Charlie’s hand.  “We were worried, Charlie.”

Mackenzie couldn’t identify the noise that Charlie made, but Will was familiar with it.  It meant ‘you’re out of hand, youngster’; Will had become intimately acquainted with that noise on more than one occasion while Mackenzie was overseas.

“There’s nothing to worry about, you know,” Charlie’s eyes were locked with Will’s.  He was no fool; if Mackenzie had pulled the plug on the broadcast, it was because her anchor was floundering.  “They’re putting me on blood pressure medication.  I’m fit as a fiddle.” 

“A fiddle that they put three stents in today,” Leona fired the retort at Charlie, narrowing her eyes at the omission.

“And had angioplasty,” Nancy added, nodding at Leona.

“Alright.”  Charlie looked between the two women to whom he had turned over the running of his life long ago.  “It was a day.”  He grinned at Will before he spoke again.  “But, now, I’m good to go for the next twenty or thirty years.”  

“It’ll be twenty if you don’t give up the bourbon.”  Nancy pursed her lips as she spoke, knowing Charlie’s response before he had even formulated it.

“I’m good to go for the next twenty years!” Charlie said emphatically, taking his wife’s hand, raising it to his lips, and pressing a kiss to her knuckles.  She smiled and rose to get more ice, brushing tears from her eyes as she did so.  Charlie was infuriating, but she wouldn’t change anything about him.

“You’re sure?”  When Will finally spoke, his voice was heavy with emotion.

“Come here, son,” Charlie held out a hand to the younger man.  Will tentatively stepped closer to the hospital bed.  When he hesitated two steps from it, Charlie patted the mattress.  “Sit down.”  Once Will was seated on the edge of the bed, Charlie put his hand on Will’s shoulder.  “I’m not going anywhere today.  Or tomorrow, probably.  Someday, though, it’s going to be the end of the road for me, and there’s some things that you need to remember, alright?”

“Charlie—“ Will began, stopping as Charlie shushed him.

“I’m so proud of you, Will,” Charlie’s gripped Will’s shoulder more fiercely as he found a rhythm for his message.  “You’re making a difference every day on the air… except today.  Today, you’re here.”  Will finally cracked a small smile.  “You’ve managed to convince a truly incredible woman to take a chance on you.”  Will chuckled and watched as Charlie’s eyes moved to Mac.  “He’s a good man, Mackenzie.  You’re making a good choice.”

“I know.”

“Son, when the day comes that I’m not here to tell you anymore, you’ve got to remember how proud you’ve made me, continue to make me.  Everything you do, you do with your whole heart—love, fight, dedicate loyalty.  It’s a sight to see, and I count myself lucky to have been a part of it.  Okay?”  Will nodded; he didn’t try to form words because he knew he couldn’t.  The moment hung over the room for the span of several breaths.

“And since he’s got twenty more years, maybe we could stop acting like he’s going to keel over at any moment?” Leona cocked her eyebrow at the men, and everyone laughed.

 

As Will and Mackenzie took their leave of the Skinners and Leona, they retraced their steps through the hospital in silence.  It wasn’t until they were halfway home that Mackenzie broke the quiet.

“It all goes too fast.”  Will nodded, but didn’t add further comment.  “Billy,” she paused, waiting for him to meet her eyes before she continued, “let’s get married.  Soon— once Charlie is out of the hospital.  I don’t want to waste any more time.”

“I’ve been saying that for months.”  He smiled wryly at her.  “What about the economy?”

“I’m sure we can think of other ways to spend your money.  Don’t you think?”

“And what about your money?”

“One of us has to save for a college fund.”  She grinned at him, and he laughed openly.  They had someone who was depending on them for a college fund, for… everything.  It was miraculous to him, still.

 

Mackenzie and Will were married a week later, at City Hall, just the two of them, with Sloan and Charlie as witnesses, of course.

“Mackenzie, darling,” her mother had tried to reason with her two days before the ceremony, “you can’t just pop off and do it without another thought.  What about the economy?”  Mackenzie had laughed as her mother had employed the same argument as she had with Will before everything had changed.

“But Mum,” Mackenzie had said, putting the call on speakerphone and setting the phone on the counter between her and Will, “life’s too short.  Everything is fleeting.  And besides, I don’t want the baby to think that we only got married because we got pregnant.  I’ve got no plan to wear a wedding dress in any size other than my current size, and so that’s where we are, getting married in two—“  Mac’s words sunk in as she was finishing her thought, and she was cut off by one sharp gasp and then by a second.  “Daddy?  Is that you?”

“Well, yes.  Hello, little girl.”

“Hi, Dad.”

“Hello, sir!” Will echoed, joining the conversation.

“Well, darling, your mother seems rather,” he paused, searching his staid, very English brain for the appropriate descriptor, “overcome by emotion at the moment.  So, let me speak for both of us and congratulations, kids.  It’s smashing news, really.”

“I’m sorry that we’re bypassing the formal wedding,” Mac said.  “We’ve been practicing for that first dance since I was old enough to twirl.”

“Oh, Mackenzie!”  Her father sounded intense in his sincerity.  “There will be plenty of other chances for me to whirl you in a circle.”

“And what a lovely excuse to come across for more frequent visits!” her mother interjected, rejoining the call.  “I’m so happy for you… for you both.”  She spoke through apparent tears.

Will and Mackenzie exchanged a look as a mild ruckus sounded on the line, and her father’s voice sounded again.

“Now, now, dear.  You must get ahold of yourself.  You’re as bad as those weepy Americans that Mackenzie is so fond of.”

“Dad,” Mackenzie said through laughter, “turning the phone facedown doesn’t cover the microphone.”  She laughed harder at her father’s indignant growl and felt the tears begin to roll as her mother’s laughter joined her own.

“He’s so red, darling.  You should see!”  Her mother choked the words through overwhelming laughter, and even Will felt himself start to chuckle.

As the laughter died down, Will pressed a brief kiss to Mackenzie’s cheek before wading into the conversation.

“Mrs. McHale, I want you to know that you and the ambassador have a standing invitation, anytime you feel like making the trip.  We’ve got plenty of space, and it would be our pleasure to have you, truly.”

Mackenzie’s breath caught in her throat, and she tilted her face up to kiss Will’s chin before echoing his sentiments to her parents.  The look on her face as he had renewed the invitation to her parents was priceless to Will; if he ended up buying another unit in the building to house visiting relatives, Will would eat the expense, in a heartbeat.  He would do anything if it kept Mackenzie looking at him like _that_ for as long as they both should live.

 

The day before the ceremony, they had announced to the staff that they would be married in a private wedding and had invited the staff to the penthouse for a non-traditional reception the day following the ceremony:  cake, drinks, low-key, and easy for Mackenzie to fathom without stress.  One of the staffers had apprised Leona of the plan; by the Will and Mac had returned home from their wedding night at the Four Seasons, their home had been invaded by their staff, caterers, florists, and Mac’s parents, who had been flown in via private jet by Leona.

Leona had slipped out shortly after Mackenzie’s parents had arrived, kissing Mackenzie on the cheek and pressing a note into her palm.  “Just making sure you get off on the right foot,” the note had read.  This was Mackenzie’s day, Will’s too—she guessed, and Leona found that she had a habit of pulling all of the focus in a room.  As she had stepped into the elevator, Charlie had caught her eye from across the room, offered her a salute with his drink, and inclined his head, ever so slightly.  Leona acknowledged him with the ghost of a smile.

“You were right, Charlie,” Leona said to the quiet space, once the elevator doors slid shut in front of her.  “There was something there.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so very much for sticking around on this journey with me! I so appreciate all of the feedback and love that you all consistently provide, both to me and to each other. It's a joy and a blessing to write in a fandom that is so loving, supportive, and encouraging.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the wrap-up of this piece! I'd love to hear what you thought of it!


	25. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I had started this epilogue ages ago-- before I ever came up with 'Like Mother, Like Daughter'-- and I didn't realize that I had played some of the beginning of this into that piece. 'Like Mother, Like Daughter' may seem more tied into this universe given this epilogue.

Epilogue

Will stepped out of the elevator and frowned.  The music pouring out of the kitchen was loud, much louder than usual.  He shrugged his bag off of his shoulder, setting it by the hall tree before continuing toward the ruckus coming from the kitchen.  Coming into the doorway, he paused, looking his wife up and down, savoring the voyeuristic moment of watching her in their home.  She wore one of his well-loved Nebraska sweatshirts; it hung on her, except where it had pulled tight across her stomach.  Beneath the long sweatshirt, maternity leggings hugged her curves in ways that immediately caused a stirring of desire in him.  As he watched her, singing as though she were the lead singer of the band, swaying her hips in time with the music as she focused on the stove in front of her, his desire grew, low and dark.

“Hey,” he said, just loud enough to be heard over the music.  She whirled to face him, a wide and genuine smile spreading across her face as she took him in.  Mackenzie hit the chorus with gusto, and she sashayed across the room.  When she reached him, she draped one arm and then the other over his shoulders, linking them behind his neck, offering her lips to his.  “I missed you,” he said, lips a breath away from hers.

“Me too.  I don’t like when you’re not in bed next to me.”  He heard the pout in her voice and kissed her tenderly, offering a silent apology for being gone.

“Well, I’m home now.  Please,” he raised his voice, finding that he had to be louder than he liked to be in order to be heard, “please tell me that you’re not playing boy bands for my son or daughter.”  He paused to turn down the music to a more manageable decibel.  “You’re going to ruin any musical taste that might be carried in my genes.”  He grinned at his wife.

“How was it?” she said, fully sidestepping his critique of her musical choice for the night.

“It was a corporate function, and my only role there was just what you said… I was the pretty face for photo ops.  Now, to return to something more important,”  He dropped a kiss on the top of her head before stepping out of Mackenzie’s arms and looking her up and down.  “You look like my wife, but I know Mackenzie McHale, and _N’Sync_ ,” he said the name with amused derision, “is not on her playlist.”

“It’s the Backstreet Boys, Billy.”  She put her hands on her hips and pursed her lips.  “If you’re going to be elitist about music, at least be accurate.”

“Okay, but regardless, the little human in there has ears, and all the books say babies can hear in utero by fifteen weeks.  And you’re at like a hundred and fifteen weeks, so, just think about what kind of influence you’re having on my son or daughter.”

“37, I’m 37 weeks, and if _you_ think it feels like 115 weeks, maybe you should try living with someone growing inside you.”

“Point taken.”

“And, look, your daughter is going to have to understand the 90’s boy bands so that she can understand the boy bands in her era.  This is a jumpstart, Billy.”  She watched his eyes grow wide as her words crossed into his consciousness.

“Daughter?” he asked reverently.  Mackenzie nodded.  “But how…”  Will started to ask the obvious question.

“Sloan blew it.”  Will nodded, somewhat unsurprised.  They should have expected it; asking Sloan to keep the gender of their baby a secret was bound to backfire.  “She and Reese came to paint the nursery while you were gone, and she leaned against the wall, I guess, because, when she came out she had a giant pink stripe up her back.”

“A girl,” he said again, blinking back tears and finding that he couldn’t physically stop smiling.  “You okay that the surprise was ruined?”

“Probably for the best.  I was seriously rethinking the designs for the boy nursery, and I would have hated to have to redo it with a newborn in the house.”  She shrugged.  “And, really, she kept that under her hat for _months_ longer than either of us expected.”  Will laughed his agreement.  “Now, Billy,” she looked up at him, eyes dark, “I know what the optics are right now and that my mobility limits any number of things,” she paused, and he cocked one eyebrow at her, unsure of her conversational path, “but in the three days that you’ve been gone, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about you, with me… in me.”

Realization finally dawned on Will.

“Oh!”  He reached for his wife, slid his hand down to her hip, and immediately stepped into her.  “Mac, from the minute I came in the door and saw you in those leggings, all I’ve thought about is peeling them off of you.”  He kissed the tip of her nose.  “And your terrible taste in music.  But mostly about getting you out of those clothes.”  She looked up at him through her lashes and tugged her bottom lip between her teeth.  “I mean it, honey.”  He shifted against her, bringing their bodies into full alignment, the evidence of the truth of his statement made clear.  Her eyes grew wide, and she smiled up at him.

“Take me to bed, Billy,” she said, voice heavy with building lust.

“What about your dinner?” he asked, peering over her shoulder at the stove.

“It’ll keep, I think.”  She reached to turn the burner off, covered the pan, and turned back to him.

“Have you eaten?”  His tone left no room for interpretation; he would not hesitate all to impose a moratorium on taking her to bed until she had eaten a full dinner.

“Several times,” she quipped.

“Today?”

“This is the second dinner.  Are you pleased with yourself?  Now, you’ve gone and blown my cover.”

“Second dinner.”  A grin spread across his face as he reached for her hand and dusted a kiss across her knuckles.  “Makes sense given that there are currently two of you.”

“Your daughter is pretty small, yet.”  She glanced down at her stomach.  “Small being, of course, a relative term.  She feels spectacularly large these days.”

“Okay, well, we’ve lost the thread of this.  Why not let me take you into the bedroom and get your mind off of the kid taking up more and more space daily?”  She smiled widely and turned toward the bedroom, walking away from him before she spoke.

“That is, without a doubt, the best idea I’ve heard all day.”

He took her in his arms then, caught her halfway between the kitchen and the bedroom, held her close, and kissed her with the pent-up passion that never seemed fully released between them.  Her arms draped over his shoulders, clasping behind his head.  She used her grip as leverage to get to her tiptoes and press herself as close to him as she could get.  Will’s sweatshirt rode higher on her hips, and he seized the opportunity to slide his hands under the hem of it and ease it upward.  The bottom band got hung up under Mac’s pregnant stomach, and she dropped her hands from around his neck to free it.  She sighed heavily, a sigh of discontent not one of desire.

“What’s the matter, honey?”

“I feel like an overstuffed plush animal.”  She looked down at herself.  “I just… I want you on top of me, I want to feel your entire body along mine.  And she’s just there, making sure I can’t have you the way that I want you.”  Will took her hand and steered her into the bedroom.

“Mackenzie, you realize that once she’s here, she’s going to do exactly the same thing, only more so, right?  Right now, she’s contained, wants for nothing.  Shortly, she’ll need fed and changed and played with… and whatever else you do with babies.  And you won’t be able to complain about how I take you.  We’ll just have to take what we can get when we can get it.”

“Are you trying to tell me that right now, at 37 weeks pregnant, you think I’m spoiled for choice in terms of my sex life?”  As if the idea were too preposterous to even fully consider, she began to giggle.  She put her hands on her hips and squared up to Will.  “Okay, Mr. Brilliant, show me.”

The dark lust in Will’s eyes brought Mackenzie back to the place of wanting she had recently vacated for humor.  Will reached for her, caught the sweatshirt between his fingers and tugged it over Mac’s head before she could even really raise her arms to help him.  Her leggings rode low on her hips, and Will wondered at their ability to have remained in place for as long as they had.

“Shoes, Mac.  Out of ‘em,” he growled at her.  She complied, toeing off the flats without breaking eye contact with Will.  He reached forward; Mac’s eyes fluttered shut, and she prepared for Will to kiss her again.  She felt his face brush past hers and then felt his fingers in her hair, tugging gently at the clip holding her hair back.  As her hair fell forward, Mackenzie shook her head lightly, instinctively attempting to put her hair to rights.  “You’re so…” Will began to speak but interrupted himself by kissing Mackenzie, long and slow, “so beautiful.”  He pressed his lips to hers again, backing her up until they found the bed.

Will started to grab Mac’s shoulders, to sit her on the bed, but stopped short, awareness overriding instinct.  She couldn’t do flat on her back; it wasn’t comfortable for her.  With a speed that impressed them both, Will removed Mac’s leggings, tossed them toward the hamper—missing and earning a pouted lip from his wife.  His own clothes followed quickly, and he climbed up to the top of the bed, sitting with his back resting against the headboard.  Mackenzie smiled at him, a question in her eyes.

“What are you up to?”

“Don’t worry about it.  Just come here.”

He patted the side of his hip, and Mackenzie made her way up the bed.  When she was alongside Will, he eased one of her knees across his lap until she was straddling him.

“You could have just given that direction,” she said, mouth a hairsbreadth from his.

“Yeah,” he agreed, voice thick, “but where’s the fun in giving away my plans too early?”

He tugged her bottom lip between his teeth and bit down, just enough to elicit a moan from Mac.  His hands ran first through her hair and then down her back, catching on the straps of her bra.  He kissed his way up her jaw to her earlobe while he unfastened the bra; he forced himself to bite back a self-satisfied smile.  These maternity bras had defeated him on more than one occasion—not tonight though.  He pulled back from her just long enough to tug the garment off and toss it in the general direction of the hamper.

“You’re going to have to pick all of that up, you know.”  He nodded absently as his hands traced up and down her back, cupping her backside and shifting her on his lap.  “I’m serious, Billy.  I can’t bend--” Mackenzie’s words died on her lips as Will’s fingers reached between them and traced a soft line through her wetness.  “Yes, please.  Do… that.”

“Been missing me, Mac?”  He sounded smug, was unshakably pleased with the reactions that he drew from his wife.  His private victory lap was cut short as Mac’s hand closed around him.  He exhaled sharply through his teeth.

“Obviously, you’ve not needed this either,” she said, stroking his hard length.

“Truce?” he asked.  In the same breath, he slid a finger inside of Mac.  Will reveled in the hitch in her breath and smiled when she nodded.

“T—truce,” she ground out as he added a second finger.  Her hips bucked against his hand, hungry for the sensations produced by his motions.  He bent his head to take a taut nipple into his mouth at the same time that his thumb began to skim outside of her.  “Will,” she moaned his name, teetering on the edge of climax. 

Her hands anchored in his hair, locking his mouth in place.  Will felt her tightening against him and withdrew his hand.  Mackenzie groaned in frustration.  He shrugged Mac’s hands out of his hair and lifted her up onto her knees, sliding flat onto his back in the same motion.  Before Mackenzie could register Will’s intention, his tongue traced the same path that his fingers had trailed minutes before.  Mackenzie grasped the top of the headboard, white-knuckling in an attempt to stay upright.  The profanities spilling from her lips registered in Will’s mind as high praise as he drove her upward over and over again, retreating with his mouth and hands over and over in the heartbeats just before Mackenzie reached her peak.  Mackenzie sagged against the headboard, unable to hold herself upright against the onslaught of wave after wave of pleasure.  Will’s fingers gripped her thighs, keeping her lifted just off of his face, and she felt him shaking from the effort.  She heard herself begging him for release, to send her over the edge.

“Come on, Mac.  You’re ready to give in already?” 

There was a thread of mischief beneath the dark lust in his voice, and Mackenzie tried to summon the presence to respond in kind.  The best she could do was offer a sound crossed between and whimper and a groan.  She felt the vibration of his chuckle more than she heard it, the vibrato of his tone doing more to build her up than he could know.  And then, his fingers were deep inside her, and his tongue was dancing circles around her, making his intention clear.  Moments later, climax tore through Mackenzie, blurring the edge of her vision.  She gave herself fully over to it, letting the headboard and Will take all of her weight as she rode out wave after wave of release.  As she began to come down, she became aware of her position above Will and shifted to lay beside him.  Her heart continued to pound, and aftershocks drew shudders from her for several more minutes.

“Your arms alright?” she asked once she found her voice again.

“Even pregnant, you still weigh less than my suitcase, hon.”

He slid his arms around her, tugging her back in close against him.  Mackenzie could feel him, still hard, against her back.  She shifted her hips back against him; he growled in response.

“Billy?” she murmured as she caught his hand in hers and pressed harder back against him.  He offered a sound of mmmms in response.  “Do you think we can try it like this?”

“Logistically, or are you asking permission?” he teased.

“Both, obviously.”  She smiled; she loved verbal sparring with him, and more was the better when it happened in bed.

“We’ll sure give it a try, hon.”  He shifted behind her, tugged her closer, and used his knee to urge her thighs perpendicular to her hips.  She felt him probing behind her, dampening himself in the wetness at the junction of her thighs.  “Oh yeah.  We can try it like this.” 

He slid into her slowly, biting his lip so hard that he was sure it would bleed.  Mackenzie shifted her hips back toward him, taking him deeper inside her.  The groan that emanated from deep in Will’s throat echoed Mac’s feelings exactly.  He canted his hips, back and forth.  It was a shallow movement, almost superficial, but it was all Will needed.  As he started to lose himself in the movements, in burying himself in his wife, he felt her begin to tighten around him.

“Will,” she gasped, sounding almost surprised.

“Abso-fucking-lutely.”  He slid his arm lower, skated over her stomach, and blindly felt his way between her legs.  He felt her breath hitch, felt her tighten more around him.  The feeling started to go out of his toes, and he knew his legs would soon follow; he was playing with borrowed time, but he wanted—he needed to make sure that Mackenzie came again.  “Just let go, Mac.”

Mackenzie exhaled her climax with a cry, and Will followed with a growl so loud that it made Mackenzie glad that their daughter wasn’t sleeping in a crib nearby.

“Holy mother,” Mackenzie said, minutes later, still breathless. 

She trailed her hands back and forth against his arms, still wrapped around her and holding her close.  Will was silent for long moments, trying to return his heartbeat to normal and to remember how to breathe normally.  Finally, he spoke.

“I usually go by Will.  But, I guess ‘holy mother’ works for tonight.” 

Mackenzie twisted several of Will’s arm hairs beneath her fingers and tugged.  Will yelped.

“Very clever, Billy.”  She sighed contentedly.  “Can we stay this way forever?”

“Eventually, we’re both going to need to shower, clean up, the usual.”  He pressed a kiss to the back of her head and shifted back just enough to slide out of her.  “But, yeah, Mac, we can stay this way forever.”

Mackenzie kissed the arm still wrapped around her.

“Good.  We’ll get up soon.”  She yawned and settled against Will.  “Just not yet.”

Will smiled and used his toes to drag a sheet close enough that he could snag it with his hand and pull it up over them.

“Just not yet,” he agreed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this 'Something There' journey! It's been well over a year since I began this piece, and I so appreciate everyone who's stuck around from beginning to end!

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts, comments, and edits are always appreciated!
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you so so much for reading! I am, as always, grateful that you've taken the time!


End file.
